In the aftermath of Ryan Clark’s emotional and heartbreaking firing from ESPN, former NBA legend Paul Pierce recently went on “I Am Athlete” podcast with LeSean McCoy, Brandon Marshall and DeSean Jackson and discussed his dismissal from ESPN back in 2021. Pierce says he “didn’t do nothing illegal” so he doesn’t believe he violated any moral conduct clauses.
Paul Pierce Doesn’t Regret ESPN Firing and Won’t Apologize
Pierce didn’t get fired while on air quite like Clark. But he kind of did. His actions during a livestream led to his controversial dismissal. On the podcast, Pierce says he never apologized after ESPN fired him because to this day he doesn’t feel like he did anything wrong.
“I got fired. For what? I got fired for having some entertainment. I’m playing cards. It’s my boy’s birthday. There’s girls dancing, and we blowing some tree. I mean, what did I do wrong”
“So they hit me, and there’s a higher-up. It was a lady. I’m like, ‘Hello.’ She’s like, ‘Yeah, we’re doing an investigation. Could you tell us what happened’”
Why Did ESPN Fire Paul Pierce?
Pierce broadcasted a raw Instagram Live video from a poker game. He was relaxing with friends and some exotic dancers just drinking, smoking, and enjoying the scene. He was all smiles. Disney wasn’t happy with the portrayal, and as a family-friendly Disney subsidiary, ESPN was put under pressure when the video began going viral and featured recreational cannabis use, alcohol and sex workers. No one is judging anyone’s private life, but Pierce’s lounge session was a bit much for executives. They fired the Basketball Hall of Famer just days later on April 5, 2021.
Pierce expanded on why he has no regrets and won’t be crying anytime soon like Ryan Clark did.
“I was just hanging out, playing cards. It wasn’t my house. I mean, it was self-explanatory. Some girls dancing, and I had some OG. It’s legal. I didn’t do nothing illegal. But at the end of the day, it’s Disney. So they was like, they have a morals clause, and they just said it was immoral”
“My agent hit me like, ‘We need you to offer an apology.’ I was like, ‘What am I apologizing for.’ Sorry to what. All them CEOs, networks, what you think they doing, they probably got more shit going on”
Fans Say Paul Pierce Should Never Have Streamed Live, Did Nothing Wrong
Years later, most fans don’t think Pierce did anything wrong or that he needed to apologize. He has his critics, who feel like he was immature and unaware of his responsibilities to ESPN. Then again, he did take the consequences and didn’t fuss over it or challenge the decision.
“He deffo didn’t do anything wrong. He’s not getting fired if he is skin was different,” one user tweeted.
“Compare this with the constant gambling partnerships ESPN and the NBA shove down the throats of viewers, and you tell me what’s moral,” said one fan in defense of Pierce.
“If he was in a room full of gay men they would have given him an espy for man of the year,” a Pierce supporter quipped.
“His mistake was going live with it,” another fan commented. “He wasn’t doing sh-t wrong but they do have a code of conduct and he broke that when he went live.”
“Wow ESPN chill out! And way to go Paul Pierce for standing your ground,” said one netizen. “Lol people are so fragile.”
Most fans weren’t sour on what Pierce did. Just that he displayed such risque activity to the world. And thought that was a sound business decision.
“The McDonald’s worker can relate to what he said because there is no reputation to uphold; they aren’t a public figure. When you’re getting paid that kind of money to represent a public network on television, they will expect a certain public image and decorum,” one user commented.
“Nothing wrong with what he did, but it’s just the fact that he was dumb enough to post it live. When you’re a TV personality you gotta move different… even at his age he still can’t understand this for some reason,” another X user commented.
“Homie thinks he can sit in a suit and analyse for nba on monday and go live at night and let b–s twerk on his high ass face. Grown men don’t understand what a role model SHOULD DO IN PRIVATE,” one confused user commented.
Paul Pierce Doesn’t Need ESPN To Gain Audience Via Popular Podcast
Pierce hasn’t stopped talking or being controversial. These days he just does it on his popular ‘The Truth After Dark’ podcast co-hosted with Azar Farideh. Pierce shares his unfiltered opinions on modern relationships, dating dynamics and pop culture, aligned with some rotating guests.
He still talks hoops on “The Truth Lounge,” a weekly basketball variety show where Pierce and different guests address the biggest NBA storylines and player debates. The Top75 NBA Champion still makes appearances on other sports podcasts such as “Club Shay Shay” and Boston Celtics-affiliated programs.
