Celtics/Lakers: Paul Pierce has a game 1 for the ages

During these playoffs, Paul Pierce has been cementing his place as an all time Celtic great and a lock to have his number retired.

First, there was the game 7 against the Cavs where he lifted his team to a win with 41 points going toe to toe with one of the games best in LeBron James.

Then there was last nights game 1 in the NBA Finals where he had a Willis Reed type moment that Celtics fans will tell their kids about (if they win the series).

It all started in third quarter when Pierce went down with a knee injury. The whole arena went silent as Pierce had to be carried off the floor.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afe9TLvKQ24]

There was footage of Pierce in the back being pushed in a wheelchair by the training staff and all the hopes of the Celtics fans were being pushed away with it but a little while later, without warning, Pierce emerged from the locker rooms with a sleeve on his knee and wasn’t limping at all. The crowd let him know how much they appreciated it.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pfYNu_jYpM]

Thanks to my man Ryne over at Odenized, there is some footage on that clip of Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson commenting on Phil Jackson’s time out calling ability (I didn’t even know that was a skill that could be guaged so easily). There is also wired footage of the Celtics timeout.

So anyway, Pierce made an immediate impact when he came back. He hit two crucial 3 pointers in a row to help the C’s clinch the game 1 victory 98-88.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XVCEjuBvTk]

The Celtics are up 1-0 in the series. Game 2 is Sunday.