If Paul Pierce is going to play like this as a reserve, maybe he should never start again.
Pierce finished with 27 points off the bench in the Nets’ 113-107 loss to the Wizards in Brooklyn on Wednesday night, looking every bit the player the Nets thought they were getting from Boston.
“I have adjusted,” Pierce said of his role off the bench, his fifth game in a row not in the starting lineup after doing it just three times in 15 years in Boston. “I have been a starter my whole career, and I am making an adjustment as a player coming off the bench.
“You just have to watch the game, help the guys on the sideline. … You get a chance to see and understand what is going on out there, instead of starting out the game. It is definitely a mental adjustment, and I think I am making that adjustment and figuring it all out with that role off the bench.”
Pierce was sensational against the Wizards, going 10-for-12 from the field, only missing two 3-pointers, and made his first seven shots from the field while also finishing with six rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot.
At Pierce’s request, Nets coach Jason Kidd left Pierce, who is still recovering from a broken bone in his right hand that sidelined him for three games, on the floor late in Monday’s blowout win over Philadelphia to help him get into a rhythm, and the momentum he gained from his play Monday appeared to carry over.
“He had a great night,” Kidd said. “If you look back to the Philly game, he had a good game.
“He’s been a scorer his whole career and you can see that carrying over from the last game. I’ll talk to my coaches [at Thursday’s practice], and we will see and I’ll talk to him a little bit about a couple of different ideas.”
It’s already been an eventful first season on the sidelines for Kidd, and we haven’t even reached Christmas yet.
Despite all of the turmoil that has surrounded his first two months in charge, his players have still backed him publicly, something Kidd has taken note of and appreciates.
“It means a lot,” Kidd said. “When you talk about the respect, and the things we’ve gone through early in this season, I think we’ve all learned from one another, and we’re all getting better, but I think the biggest thing is our patience.
“We’ve all been patient, because it’s easy to talk about letting go of the rope or the injuries, but we have a great group of guys in that locker room … and they’ve shown a lot of patience. It’s great to be supported from the top, but it’s great to be supported by your players.”
Kidd was also asked about the notion he has been missed by the Knicks, who are off to their own poor start to the season, but said he’s only focused on his team’s play.
“I don’t pay attention to that,” he said. “I can only focus on the Brooklyn Nets. Those things that are being said, sometimes they’re good, sometimes they’re bad. But, right now, I’m just focused on my team.”