Former Boston Celtics player Paul Pierce. Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Paul Pierce comments on ESPN firing in 2021

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 4/10/23

Those waiting for Paul Pierce to apologize … are just going to have to keep on waiting.

Speaking this week on the “I AM ATHLETE” podcast, the retired Basketball Hall of Famer Pierce made blunt comments about his firing from ESPN.

Pierce was let go in 2021 after filming himself on an Instagram Live video participating in a poker game while drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana, and being surrounded by women in bikinis.

“I got fired by having some entertainment,” said Pierce. “I’m playing cards. It’s my boy’s birthday. It’s girls dancing and we blowing some tree. What did I do wrong? … It wasn’t my house.”

Here is the full clip of Pierce’s comments.

Paul Pierce recounts being fired from ESPN on his day off:

“I got fired for having some entertainment. What did I do wrong?”

Subscribe & watch a dope convo w/ The Truth, @PaulPierce34 → https://t.co/tNyj1hoL2N pic.twitter.com/DD9O0YHRB9

— I AM ATHLETE (@IAMATHLETEpod) April 10, 2023

Pierce, now 45, worked at ESPN as an NBA analyst after retiring as a player in 2017. He was a memorable on-air personality for the network … but not always for good reasons since plenty of his opinions sparked criticism.

As for Pierce’s firing, it probably wasn’t so much what he did but rather that he filmed himself doing so. ESPN, owned by Disney, is essentially a family company, and the optics of keeping Pierce around after those on-camera shenanigans would have been pretty terrible.

Despite no longer having a platform at ESPN, Pierce has been far from quiet since being canned. He has even taken other big shots at the network before.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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