Paul Pierce Biography Paul Pierce Biography Since entering the NBA in 1998 with the Boston Celtics, Paul Pierce has emerged as one of the league’s brightest stars and a cornerstone of the resurgent franchise. On the parquet floor, Paul is the Celtics "go-to-man" as the team’s leading scorer and captain. His leadership extends to his off-the-court activities where Paul has worked tirelessly within the community to better the lives of young people in the Greater Boston area and his hometown of Los Angeles. Paul is a two-time NBA All-Star and consistently ranks among the league’s scoring elite. His game is a package of grace, power, and speed honed from countless hours of practice and competition from the playground basketball courts of Los Angeles to the gyms at Inglewood High School and the University of Kansas. His astonishing repertoire of offensive moves, both inside and out, whether it is pulling up and draining a jump-shot or slashing to the basket, enables Paul to quickly take over a game and set the tempo. In only his second season, during the 2001-2002 campaign, Paul tallied more than 2,000 points, becoming the first Celtic to accomplish this feat since Larry Bird in 1988. The following season, as he helped lead the Celtics to the Eastern Conference Division Finals, Paul became the first Celtic in team history to finish as the league leader in total points scored (2144), prompting Lakers Star Shaquille O’Neal to give Paul the nickname "the Truth." Paul’s star shines just as bright off the court as evidenced by his ongoing community service initiatives . He serves as the NBA and Celtics spokesperson for the "Read to Achieve" program, visiting Boston-area elementary schools every month, where he conducts reading seminars for students. During the season Paul also hosts 34 local children at every Celtics home game in his special section "Pierce’s Playground." In the off-season, Paul’s community relations efforts have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for various youth groups in the Boston area. In the summers of 2001 and 2002, Paul hosted a celebrity softball game in Boston and raised more than $200,000 to benefit Boston-area charities including the Boys & Girls Club and The Mayors Scholarship Fund. The game drew a wide array of top athletes and entertainers including Hollywood stars Matt Damon, Tara Reid, Shannon Elizabeth and Joey McIntyre. In 2002, Paul formally announced the creation of his charitable foundation - The Truth Fund. The organization’s mission is to provide educational and life-enriching opportunities for disadvantaged youth. His outreach efforts were recognized when he received the NBA Home Team Community Service Award , where the NBA and Fannie Mae Foundation donated $50,000 in Pierce’s name to the Project Hope charity in Boston. In the Fall of 2003, Paul took his fundraising activities from the softball diamond to the fashion runway. Paul partnered with leading designer, Tommy Hilfiger, and men’s fashion magazine, GQ, to create "Runway 34" a fashion show benefit featuring more than 30 Tommy Hilfiger models and special guests to benefit The Truth Fund and The Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation. In addition to his charitable work, Paul serves as corporate spokesperson for the New England Medical Center as well as a number of the nation’s top consumer brands including Nike, Spalding and Pepsi.
Source: paulpierce.net
| 
