'I Wanted to Play in the Forum' – Boston Celtics Legend Reveals His 2 Biggest Disappointments

Coming into the NBA in 1998, Pierce wanted to play against Jordan. However, the six-time Finals MVP retired for a second time after winning his sixth title. He revealed that during his guest appearance at Julian Edelman’s “Games with Names.”

Additionally, his dream of playing at The Forum didn’t happen since the season was shortened to 50 games for each team. The Boston Celtics legend played in 47 games and the team didn’t face the Lakers that year.

“Yep. He went to Washington. That’s when I got to play against him, cuz he retired the year I came in. Yeah. So it was a couple of things that happened when I came into the league. Jordan retired, and the Lakers moved out of the Forum to the Staples… That was like my two biggest disappointments,” Pierce said.

The Boston Celtics star still got a chance to face Jordan

The thing about Jordan during the late 90s and early 2000s, he would eventually resurface. After his second retirement, the Hall of Fame guard suited up for two seasons. This time, it was with the Washington Wizards.

He was also much older at that time and wasn’t contending for a championship. Pierce, who wanted to face Jordan, got his wish. Although, he would’ve preferred to play against MJ back when he was with the Bulls.

“No, he didn’t have the athleticism. No, but because Bulls Jordan was like scary. I felt like I was on the same level as Jordan in Washington, you know, as a young kid,” Pierce told Edelman.

Pierce said that while he was still MJ, he his lack of athleticism was something that felt different about playing against him.