I told you guys that Pierce was overweight last sesaon!!

[GonzoLays]

And whats the big story this year? Pierce dropped 15 pounds from his 2007 playing weight. I told you guys this and you all blasted me, especially badmuthaceltic. "Oh, you don't know what the hell you are talking about. You just hate Pierce." Pfft, whatever.

The Pierce we saw last season was an imposter. The man could barely take Sasha Pavolic off the dribble. I was really dissapointed that he would show up in such horrendous shape. And you could tell in his game. No fluidity to his moves. He looked like he was running through quick sand to get the hole. Pierce actually played himself into the shape througout the season and peaked in the finals.

The old Paul Pierce is back. Thank God. And once again, THE GREAT GONZOLAYS!! The poster that knows all. From the DOC to the PP. He's always right.

[Duganov 34 5 20]

he actually dropped 7 pounds not 15

[CeltsfanSinceBirth]

[TheTimeDoctor]

he actually dropped 7 pounds not 15

yeah, what he said; and yo mama

[campybatman]

The Pierce we saw last season was an imposter.

Really? Or do you say that in jest.

Pierce was a second or third team All-Defensive Team player or could've been, an All-Star, a NBA Finals MVP and NBA champion. All this for a player who was supposedly overweight? What's overweight for Pierce? Because if you ask Baron Davis, a close friend, he would tell you Paul growing up was a thick kid somewhat. My point is: NBA players say every year that they're in the best shape of their career, but that doesn't always imply that they were overweight the previous season. Given the positions Pierce can play, small forward and shooting guard, he can't afford to be really overweight and out-of-shape. Especially, being a slasher. Also, Pierce has had to add more muscle mass over the years due to the constant beating he endures driving to the basket.

[GonzoLays]

he actually dropped 7 pounds not 15

No, he actually dropped 15 pounds, not 7.

Read today's Herald story:

Pierce might actually be better now as the result of his championship experience. Witness his decreased bulk. At 225 pounds, the Celtics captain is approximately 15 pounds lighter than last season’s playing weight.

www.bostonherald.com/sports

[greenbeans]

Did you b**** when he purposefully added that weight circa 02-04?? Go back and look it up, it was around the time when Danny took over. There was all this talk about how his body wouldn't be able to hold up because of the continuos abuse it was taking driving to the basket.

[3pt %]

Gonzo, not your best effort.

You had a couple of great ones last year though, so we are confident you will be able to work your way out of this slump.

Probably just rust from the off-season.

[TheCelticTruth]

i think you overstate it a bit gonzo, and it depends on how you determine overweight.

tell you what, if he does everything he did last year all season, while being back to his old "scoring" self, then i'll agree he was "overweight"

[Rocky5000]

He was overweight last season and has been for every season since the ECF run. I don't think anyone would deny that, but while not ideal, he can obviously play pretty well at a heavier weight.

[greenbeans]

And here's another bit from that article Gonzo referred to:

His performance three years ago during a training camp lap drill is still talked about. Players were given 10 minutes to complete as many lengths of the basketball court as they could, and Pierce didn’t simply win the drill and lap virtually every other player on the floor.

He completed the last five lengths jogging backward, and spitting out his customary dose of trash talk to all within earshot.

But his current physical feat may be even more impressive. Somehow, in between enjoying the Vegas night life and tending to his young family, Pierce lost 15 pounds

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1128770&format=&page=2&listingType=celt#articleFull

Seems like being "overweight" isn't exactly a bad thing for the cap

[TheCelticTruth]

And here's another bit from that article Gonzo referred to:

His performance three years ago during a training camp lap drill is still talked about. Players were given 10 minutes to complete as many lengths of the basketball court as they could, and Pierce didn’t simply win the drill and lap virtually every other player on the floor.

He completed the last five lengths jogging backward, and spitting out his customary dose of trash talk to all within earshot.

But his current physical feat may be even more impressive. Somehow, in between enjoying the Vegas night life and tending to his young family, Pierce lost 15 pounds

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1128770&format=&page=2&listingType=celt#articleFull

Seems like being "overweight" isn't exactly a bad thing for the cap

oh man, can we add "cap" to our list of pierce nicknames? please???

[Duganov 34 5 20]

he actually dropped 7 pounds not 15

No, he actually dropped 15 pounds, not 7.

Read today's Herald story:

Pierce might actually be better now as the result of his championship experience. Witness his decreased bulk. At 225 pounds, the Celtics captain is approximately 15 pounds lighter than last season’s playing weight.

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports

I'm sorry but he said it himself that he lost 7 pounds, and I trust him more than those reporters

[Datruth345]

7? 15?

lets just settle at 11

and call it a good offseason

[SonicYouth34]

Are you saying that Truth is fat?

[GuyClinch]

He is probably carrying less muscle then he did last year as well. Your making the very incorrect assumption that you can just shed fat and not muscle. This almost never happens. People who lose weight rapidly lose muscle first actually.

So PP is simply playing at a lighter weight. It's a choice. I personally think that it makes people "quicker" as thinner people seem to change direction faster (even if they jump just as high or run even faster in a straight line).

I once saw a report about a top college NFL linebacker who also played varsity tennis for his school. Naturally this guy was built but he explained that to really compete at tennis he would have to shed a bunch of muscle (which he wasn't prepared to do). He didn't change direction fast enough..

Kobe did much the same thing a while back. One season he came in pretty buff - and was the 'strong' Kobe. Now of late he has come in as the 'fast' Kobe. Both Kobe's were in excellent shape.

The light Paul is a good choice for Paul vs. Lebron. He wasn't going to be able to outmuscle him but now he can outquick him at least on the offensive end. Lebron with his superior size and strength isn't going to be able to change direction fast enough to react to surprise moves from Paul.

It's not so great vs. Kobe though..Kobe won't get dominated as badly by Paul's strength..

Pete

[Fencer reregistered]

Good post, Pete.

Pierce's conditioning has always been enough to be (his or his coach's choice):

1. One of the league's very elite scorers and rebounders, and a decent defender.
2. One of the leaguers better defenders and better scorers, and a very good rebounder.

He was #1 until the current team was assembled. Last post-season he was more #2.

And in the games where he DID thoroughly excel at both ends of the court, he played to utter exhaustion.

None of this his to his discredit -- the other guys are conditioned too, and they (Lebron, Kobe, et al. aside) have less to do each night than Pierce does.

[Al-Haqq]

Players change their playing weight. Kobe Bryant last season lost 10 or so pounds so he could be lighter ... does that make him fat the prior season? No.

Same with Pierce. He opted to get even lighter for strategic purposes. People think he's fat because he's broad with relatively small muscle mass compared to other players in his position.

[Tricky Ricky]

So the fact that he lost weight means that he was overweight??? I hate people who try to rub it in when they are right or think they are right, people like you are sooooooooo annoying.

[MyInsatiableOne]

Hilarious! I **** myself laughing when I saw this on The Soup last year...