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Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has signed forward Paul Pierce.
“We are very happy to welcome Paul to our organization and add his championship experience and history of clutch play to our team,” said Grunfeld. “He will be a good fit alongside our young, dynamic backcourt while his presence and leadership will make a difference for us both on and off the court.”
Pierce, a 10-time NBA All-Star, joins the Wizards with career averages of 21.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting .447 from the field, .370 from three-point range and .807 from the line in 1,177 career games with Boston and Brooklyn. He currently ranks as the 18th leading scorer in NBA history (25,031 points) and ranks fourth among active players in NBA scoring history (behind only Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett). The 6-7 forward also ranks fifth all-time in NBA history in three-point field goals made (1,935) and fourth all-time in NBA history in three-point field goals attempted (5,228).
In addition to his regular season history, Pierce brings 148 games of postseason experience to Washington. He led Boston to the 2008 NBA Championship, earning Finals MVP honors after averaging 21.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, and helped them return to the 2010 Finals. Pierce holds career postseason averages of 20.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.3 steals. His 3,007 points ranks him 23rd in NBA playoff history (seventh among active players) while his 148 games ranks him ninth among active players.
Pierce was originally drafted by Boston with the 10th overall pick in the 1998 NBA Draft. He finished his Celtics career ranked among the storied franchise’s all-time leaders in several categories, including free throws made and attempted (first), points scored, points per game and field goals attempted (second), games played, minutes played and field goals made (third), assists (fourth) and rebounds (seventh). He stands with Larry Bird and John Havlicek as the only players in Celtics history to score 20,000 points.
Boston traded Pierce to Brooklyn as part of a nine-player deal on July 12, 2013. He averaged 13.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists while shooting .451 from the floor and .373 from three-point range in 75 games for the Nets last season.
