Despite the heated and highly documented on-court battles they had from the past in Boston, Cleveland and Miami, Paul Pierce will still deeply acknowledge LeBron James’ legacy not only as a player, but also as a person.
“Never,” Pierce simply responded when asked by Shannon Sharpe in Club Shay Shay if there’s a player that has ever been criticized as James.
“And under these conditions with social media, and to be able to live up to it. … You know, people will say, ‘I don't like LeBron.’ That's not true. I have much respect for LeBron. Like, LeBron is the reason I am who I am. I became a better player playing against him. And what I will say is, there's nobody in the history of the game that's been as hyped, lived up to it, and surpassed it—and had to carry so much weight on his shoulders politically, athletically, and then be under the microscope to be a household citizen. Like, he has no blemishes. He’s got no margin for error.”
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Even before he entered the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar already generated an unimaginable hype as a high school teenager.
Fast forward today, James successfully conquered everything imposed against him from the overwhelming critics, expectations and pressure. He defined greatness by winning four NBA titles, earning four league MVPs and becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
For over 20 years, James cemented his case as the gold standard of sustained excellence. He continues to be the perfect face of the entire league, never being entangled in any off-court controversies and scandals.
There’s always a reason why James will go down as a sports icon. And as his past rival and competitor, Pierce offers nothing but credit to James for being a great ambassador and model to the game.
“Think about all our great athletes. [Muhammad] Ali had his, [Bill] Russell went through his, Magic [Johnson] went through his, [Michael] Jordan had his thing with the gambling. Floyd Mayweather Jr. had his issues, went to jail. [Mike] Tyson— all the greats at the top went through something. LeBron is 20-something years in, and no blemish,” Pierce further said. “That’s incredible to me.”
Pierce added: "Like, he had the nickname 'King' from Day 1 and lived up to it. … The nicknames didn't come until you really did something, right? He got his before he actually did something, and lived up to it. So that's crazy right there.”
With the twilight of James's career already approaching, we can only cherish his presence on the hardwood while it lasts.
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