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Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce wasted not time getting very disrespectful after the New York Knicks exited the NBA Playoffs with a Game 7 defeat on their home court to the Indiana Pacers. Pierce held nothing back as he walked all over Knicks star Jalen Brunson and pissed a lot of people off in the process.
Paul Pierce gets slammed for Brunson jersey video
"What you say, homie?" Pierce said while aggressively stomping a Brunson jersey into the ground. "Y'all still talking?"
Brunson struggled in the decisive Game 7 at Madison Square Garden, putting up 17 points on 6-for-17 shooting. He only played 29 minutes as he battled through injuries. Nonetheless, the overwhelming majority of social media defended the Knicks star against Pierce's tasteless slander.
"Paul Pierce is the most embarrassing former NBA player. Just a hater trying to stay relevant," one comment fired back on Instagram.
"That is so unnecessary. Dude was injured. Be respectful," said a popular response on Twitter/X.
"What did Brunson personally do to him to make a grown man act like this?" a fan wondered on Instagram.
Celtics get Pacers in Eastern Conference Finals
Pierce may have been secretly celebrating underneath his anger. His beloved Celtics will now avoid Brunson and New York in the Eastern Conference Finals, giving them an easier matchup with the 6-seed Pacers. Boston plays great defense, but stopping Brunson's playoff average of 32.4 points per game would have been a challenge.
Away from Pierce's blind hatred, here's how the defeated star evaluated his own play in the loss: "There's pros and cons to how I played. I played well individually at some points in time during the playoffs. The cons are I didn't play well enough to help my team move forward," Brunson told reporters.
Pierce stomping on the jersey was not the only piece of viral taunting that occurred right after Game 7. Indiana point guard Tyrese Haliburton paid tribute to Pacers history by wearing a hoodie featuring Reggie Miller's famous choke gesture, which dates back to a playoff series the Pacers ended up losing to the Knicks in seven games.