Chat Transcript: Paul Pierce

Celtics Captain Paul Pierce took a few minutes to chat live with fans on Thursday, December 1st. Pierce shared his thoughts on the start of the C's season, the upcoming holidays and who he would love to play one-on-one against.

So check out the full transcript below and remember to vote for Paul for the 2006 NBA All-Star Game.

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Jake, Westford: Hey Paul How has the move up to the three spot changed your game? In addition, how does it change how the team opperates on defense and offense? Keep up the good work!

Paul Pierce: I don't really see any difference. The biggest difference is who you guard, who you match up with on the defensive end. Otherwise, whether I play two or three, I play the same game offensively.

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matt (jacksonville): How would you descride Doc Rivers coaching style to your coaches of the past ?

Paul Pierce: He's more of player's coach, being a former player himself. He has done it, been a player and knows what we deal with game-in and game-out. In the past, I played for a lot of dictator type coaches, who are always yelling and Doc is not that way. He gets us to do what we need to do, and runs very tight practices, but he also realizes that we are professionals. He is a pleasure to play for.

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Rashad (Boston): Paul, Tell me about the Kansas connection with Raef LaFrentz. Do you enjoy being NBA teammates with a former Jayhawk teammate?

Paul Pierce: Yeah, it's alot of fun. We can always talk about our memories from college. We have good chemistry, of course, coming from the same college team. He understands my game and I understand his, and that is a help.

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David, Swampscott Ma: Hey Paul! What player in the NBA do you most want to play a game of 1 on 1 against and why?

Paul Pierce: Hmmm....Wow, a current player? Probably Earl Boykins! I wanna see if I can play defense on him. He is so fast, I wanna see if I can stay in front of him. That would be a real test of my footwork! But, we need to make it a fullcourt one-on-one!

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Alessandro (Worcester MA): Do you expect to see more games out of Kedrick Perkins like the one we saw last night against the Sixers?

Paul Pierce: Well, we hope so. If so, that means we will be getting that great lift night-in and night-out. If he can give us those kinds of numbers, he'll be helping us win alot of games and probably make some All-Star teams. That inside presence can help you win games.

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Serghei ( Holland): Yo Paul , whats up, i was always wondering why did you choose number 34 as your jersey number?

Paul Pierce: It was the biggest jersey I could fit into in high school. I was the biggest kid and that was the biggest jersey, so I was kinda stuck with that number and since then, I've kinda stuck with it.

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Byz: Do you love Boston as a city and a sports town, and how difficult is it to play here sometimes?

Paul Pierce: Of course I love Boston. The people here are very knowledgable fans, very into their sports. I don't think it's difficult to play here. It's only as difficult as you make it as a player. I enjoy playing here. I put more pressure on myself as a player than any fan or group of fans could put on me, so it's a pleasure playing in Boston.

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Jorge; Riverbank, CA: Greetings from California! With all the greats that have come and gone through the Celtics organization (yourself included), if you could choose one player to play side by side with, who would it be? See you in December!

Paul Pierce: Lemme see...that's a good one. I'd probably have to say Bill Russell. What he did for the game, how he changed the game, how unselfish he was. Plus, I wouldn't have to play any defense, I could just let my guy drive by me and Russell would block his shot!

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Anthony (Newport): I was wondering how you think the young celtics players are doing. Have they shown some maturity so far through the season

Paul Pierce: They're still growing. These are young guys and it's a process when you come into the NBA at such a young age. On and off the court, it's a real learning experience. That being said, they have loads of potential and we may have some future All-Stars here.

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Josh (San Antonio): What would you say is the most memorable game you have played in?

Paul Pierce: Most memorable game, would be the Eastern Conference Finals playoffs when we were down 21 points going into the fourth quarter and we came back for the biggest comeback in NBA playoff history. It would be that game.

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Mike (Boston): Paul- Considering you lived practically down the street from the Great Western Forum and were a diehard Lakers fan growing up, how difficult was it for you to switch your loyalty to the Laker's biggest archrival, the Celtics?

Paul Pierce: Oh that was a tough one. I never thought I'd be drafted by the Celtics. The it was like, Wow, I just got drafted by the team I hated as a kid. But I always had respect for the Celtics players, it was just that they were the rival of my favorite team. But since getting here and learning about the great history here with the Boston Celtics and understanding all the great players, it's a pleasure for me to be a part of that history.

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Janette (Lexington, MA): What do you want for Christmas?

Paul Pierce: Oh.....a championship ring. Or, alot of championship rings.

Paul Pierce: Thanks to everyone for joining me today, it's always a pleasure to chat with my fans and fans of the Boston Celtics. And don't forget to vote for me for the All-Star Game!