Ball Around

Paul Pierce Compares Himself to Kevin Durant While Also Criticizing Him

The Hall of Fame former Celtic has a complicated relationship with the Suns All-Star.

Alex Kirschenbaum

Jan 2, 2015; Oklahoma City, OK, USA: Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards forward Paul Pierce (34) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-Imagn Images
Jan 2, 2015; Oklahoma City, OK, USA: Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards forward Paul Pierce (34) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-Imagn Images / Mark D. Smith-Imagn Images

Hall of Fame former Boston Celtics small forward Paul Pierce has a complicated relationship with All-Star Phoenix Suns power forward Kevin Durant.

Pierce, himself a 10-time All-Star during his decorated tenure with Boston, has become an outspoken critic of, well, pretty much every non-Celtic in his new role as a sports media talking head.

Most recently, Pierce called out 15-time All-Star Durant for daring to get trash-talked by rookie Memphis Grizzlies forward Cam Spencer during a narrow 120-118 Memphis victory on Monday.

"This would've never happened to me," Pierce said of the moment. "Just the demeanor I displayed on the court, and how I presented myself as a human being — him, off the bench, who don't play — come up to me after that — and then this [referring to a confrontation with shooting guard Desmond Bane] — what is this?"

Here's the moment Spencer yapped at the future Hall of Famer.

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In defeat, the 36-year-old Durant scored 35 points on 11-of-24 shooting from the field (7-of-9 from distance) and 6-of-6 shooting from the foul line, dished out five dimes, grabbed five rebounds, and blocked one shot across 41:25 of action.

"I would've got a fine," Pierce said. "Of all people, not him [Spencer]... This ain't a knock on KD, but... that's disrespectufl."

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There's no question that Durant has enjoyed more longevity as an elite player than Pierce, although he has certainly been at times fairly passive with the Suns this year.

During his age-36 season, Pierce was a role player for the 44-38 Brooklyn Nets, averaging 13.5 points on .451/.373/.826 shooting splits, 4.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 blocks a night.

Durant, meanwhile, is still performing at an All-Star level with Phoenix. Across 53 healthy bouts, the 6-foot-11 Texas product is averaging 26.8 points while slashing .529/.413/.830, 6.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists a night.

Still, despite fielding a capped-out roster that also includes All-Star guards Devin Booker and Bradley Beal (well, a former All-Star, in Beal's case), the club has been anything but harmonious this season under new head coach Mike Budenholzer. The club is currently 30-36 on the year, 2.5 games behind the 33-34 Dallas Mavericks for the Western Conference's No. 10 seed and the final play-in tournament bracket.

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Alex Kirschenbaum
ALEX KIRSCHENBAUM

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