2008 NBA Finals, Game 1. It’s the middle of the tight third quarter, as the Boston Celtics and LA Lakers are battling hard for the opening Finals game. With 6:51 on the clock, Kobe Bryant drives and fades on Paul Pierce to extend the lead to four.
But after contact, Pierce falls down with a pained expression, grabbing his right leg. The crowd cramps in silence, and teammates quickly surround Pierce. He is promptly wheeled off to the locker room. Fortunately, after less than two minutes of game time, Dr. Rivers clears Pierce, and he checks back in, accompanied by a huge ovation.
His return relieved the crowd as Pierce set his aim on the rim and unloaded two massive shots to give Boston the lead. In the end, he scored 22 points (ed. a double-deuce) as the Celtics took game one.
In a series of close games to follow, the Celtics managed to overpower the Lakers and win the 2008 Finals 4-2. However, one of the biggest prevailing narratives that couldn’t be dumped was the puzzling Paul Pierce injury incident. How did Pierce recover from such a seemingly serious injury so quickly?
Soon after, theories came up on how Pierce actually had pooped his shorts and had to leave the game ASAP. But, as years passed, this phenomenon that amused the fans never came close to fully resolving.
To make this story even more bizarre, we might never find out the real truth from the basketball legend appropriately nicknamed “The Truth”. In 2019, Pierce implied that he had, in fact, had “the incident” the fans speculated about. However, a few years later, he rebutted this and said that he actually sprained his MCL.
In an interview a few years ago, Pierce even explained how he didn’t soil himself, as it wouldn’t make any sense to sit in a wheelchair if he did. While we certainly didn’t need Pierce’s detailed play-by-play on this, it is unusual for someone who didn’t do something to elaborate on it so much—just saying.
We’ve heard about Shaq’s 61-point, 23-rebound Birthday Game and Jordan’s 38-point Flu Game. But true NBA fans will also forever remember the legendary Paul Pierce Wheelchair Game.
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Featured image taken from YouTube.
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