When is Paul Pierce going to return to the Boston Celtics?

Someday, somehow, Paul Pierce is going to be a Boston Celtic again.  Not that he ever really stopped being a true Celtic.  He's just been wearing other uniforms for a while.  Currently he's playing the roles of sage mentor, clutch performer, and soul crusher for the Wizards.  He helped them vanquish the Raptors and now he's doing what he can to help them knock off the top seeded Hawks.

Since everything centers around Celtics talk here, this begs the question.  When can we get Pierce back?

Inconvenient Truth: C's could use a vet like Pierce - Boston Celtics Blog - ESPN

Through five postseason games, Pierce is averaging 16.2 points per game while shooting 54.2 percent from the floor and 51.5 percent beyond the 3-point arc. Pierce has stepped up in big moments, which is noteworthy considering how Ainge spent part of his after-the-season news conference last week talking about how the Celtics need players that are capable of scoring in crunch-time situations. "I think the hardest skill to find in our league is guys that can score in the fourth quarter -- the last-six-minutes-of-the-game-type scorers, offensive creators," Ainge said.

The answer is probably "not anytime soon."  This summer the 37 year old Pierce has a player option for $5.5M should he choose to stick with the Wizards.  Based on how the playoffs have gone so far, he might decide to pick up that option and give it another go next year.  He could also opt out and take a mid level offer from just about any playoff team with the MLE available.

Would the Celtics make him an offer (maybe even for a hometown discount) to take his talents back to Beantown? Well, I guess I wouldn't rule anything out entirely, but it seems like they have their hearts set on younger players and fireworks.  That might not leave enough room for Pierce.

Still, Pierce has said in the past that he wants to return to the Celtics in some capacity or another.  He might be an assistant coach, assistant GM, or something along those lines.  Shoot, he could be named Vice President in charge of Swagger and I'd call it the hire of the century.

In the meantime, I'm rooting for the Wizards for the rest of the playoffs.  Go Washington! Go Truth!