Paul Pierce Again Suggests Idea of Retirement

A couple of weeks ago, Paul Pierce brought up the idea of his retirement at the end of the year. Considering how well he's played for much of this year, you'd be forgiven if you immediately wrote that off as crazytalk. But now he's bringing it up again.

Pierce: Retirement has 'crossed my mind' - Boston Celtics Blog - ESPN Boston

"It's crossed my mind," Pierce told MacMullan. "I've played a lot of years, ran a lot of miles. You just gotta wait and see what's going to happen this year. You never know what direction this team is going to head in. You don't know what Kevin is going to do, don't know what Ray is going to do. This team could be in a rebuilding situation starting this summer. Like I said I always wanted to retire a Celtic, so who knows."

Notice how he directly mentions the future of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. I think this is a clear signal to Danny Ainge and the Celtics. In the past he's said that he'd be fine with helping out a rebuilding effort, but this doesn't sound like he would be. Or maybe he'd be fine with adding young players as long as he can do it with his fellow Big 3 guys.

Regardless, it seems like if Danny Ainge decides to move on from Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce is giving himself the option of moving on from the game.