Jalen Rose.

[Diesel]

I saw rose talking about a superstar on Mike and Mike the other morning..

He made some interesting points. Then he went down the roll naming superstars....

I was in agreement until.....

"Paul Pierce?"

" Pierce is a superstar".

Surely if Pierce is a superstar, then JJ is a superstar.

What do you think ?

[Supporter]

I used to think so too a couple of years back but now I see things more clearly. Joe is my favorite player but he has trouble creating easy shots, sure he makes the tough ones but he can't get those easy open jumpers or layups like Pierce does. And most importantly Pierce can play off the ball and can get to the freethrow line if he has to, I can't say the same about Joe. Although Joe and Pierce have the same talents, both are big, both are good ballhandlers, JJ just makes life tough far too much and he doesn't make fast decisions, unlike Pierce. So no, JJ is not a superstar just because Paul Pierce is considered one.

[APE]

One thing about Pierce is that he's hit gamewiinning shots in the playoffs as opposed to you know what...

He's not a superstarin my eyes though, but light years ahead of JJ in that regard.

Edited May 21, 2011 by Bruin

[MaceCase]

Well he wasn't Finals MVP for nothing and they were the original Big 3. Surely you don't consider him the Bosh of that trio?

[capstone21]

I always considered Pierce a quality all star player but never a Superstar

[ngc7]

pierce is a superstar in boston as joe would be but pierce would not be one in atl

[99PROBL3MS]

The biggest difference between JJ and Pierce is that Pierce gets the star calls and JJ doesn't. Maybe he should flop more?

[Seano]

I always considered Pierce a quality all star player but never a Superstar

Same here. Very good player, very consistent and very clutch, but not a superstar. What does superstar even mean, anyway? I mean it's such a subjective term to begin with, and one man's superstar could be another guy's merely good. Anyway, Pierce isn't and has never been in that uppermost tier of NBA players, the guys who are so good that they have the potential to lead you to a championship almost by themselves, guys like Kobe and DWade and etc etc etc. Pierce is not that, he's just a really good player like JJ is, but better. Pierce will be a very worthy Hall of Famer, but I don't think that anyone would put him at any time as being among that highest tier of star player.

[Supporter]

Same here. Very good player, very consistent and very clutch, but not a superstar. What does superstar even mean, anyway? I mean it's such a subjective term to begin with, and one man's superstar could be another guy's merely good. Anyway, Pierce isn't and has never been in that uppermost tier of NBA players, the guys who are so good that they have the potential to lead you to a championship almost by themselves, guys like Kobe and DWade and etc etc etc. Pierce is not that, he's just a really good player like JJ is, but better. Pierce will be a very worthy Hall of Famer, but I don't think that anyone would put him at any time as being among that highest tier of star player.

If you are a Hall of Famer you are a superstar. In his heyday, Pierce was putting up numbers that were far superior to Joe's numbers

[ag82]

It's hard for me to give an honest opinion of paul pierce because i really don't enjoy watching his style of play. Personally, I have never considered him a superstar and maybe that is just because I don't like his game.

Also I agree with above in that we don't really know what a superstar is. My definition could be way different than jalen's. I don't think many people in other cities are buying tickets to celtics games so they can watch paul pierce play though, which I think says something.

[Marvin24Williams]

Paul Pierce was a superstar. T-Mac imo was also a superstar back in the day.

[dlpin]

Superstar is a loose definition. In my mind, superstars are the mvp caliber players who can carry teams by themselves. In that case, no, Paul Pierce has never been a superstar.

That said, and trying hard not to sound like a homer, Joe Johnson's career is not on the same level as Pierce's, even before the big 3.

[Joker]

Joe Johnson is a #2 option superstar like Pau Gasol. As #1, they aren't even close to that status. If we get D12 or CP3. Joe will become a superstar. If we get CP3, Al will become a superstar. Two players can benefit from CP3. Only one benefits from Dwight if we had him. Joe can fit in any system where he's a #2 or #3. He fits around almost everything except the Hawks, lol.

[Atlantaholic]

Paul Pierce did put up superstar caliber numbers some years of his career and led the Celtics to the conference finals with a team full of scrubs (joe johnson was on that team as a rookie). His individual numbers suffered when the big three came together but he was a superstar early on in his career. Joe Johnson, sadly, was NEVER on the level of Paul Pierce in his prime. Not even close honestly. Joe is definitely a #2 guy, and this year he was more like a #3 guy. Paul Pierce is a hall of fame lock, and has a shot when it's all said and done to possibly be the leading scorer in Boston Celtic history. He has had five seasons of averaging 25+ points, and a finals MVP to his credit. He may not be a super top tier star, like Lebron, Nowitski, Wade, and Durant, but he is a superstar in my book. (And this coming from a guy who hates Paul Pierce with all his heart)

[EazyRoc]

Joe Johnson is a #2 option superstar like Pau Gasol. As #1, they aren't even close to that status. If we get D12 or CP3. Joe will become a superstar. If we get CP3, Al will become a superstar. Two players can benefit from CP3. Only one benefits from Dwight if we had him. Joe can fit in any system where he's a #2 or #3. He fits around almost everything except the Hawks, lol.

How do you figure ? He doesn't have excellent hands or the athletic ability that Tyson Chandler had. Yeah maybe the pick and pop, but he definitely needs to work on his handles.

[Joker]

How do you figure ? He doesn't have excellent hands or the athletic ability that Tyson Chandler had. Yeah maybe the pick and pop, but he definitely needs to work on his handles.

He has good hands on the move. His hands are weak in the post when pressure is on him. His athletic ability is very good for his position. Not too sure what you are saying. He can go coast to coast. That telling that he has solid handles. He like almost all PF's not named Odom, KG, or Dirk needs to improve their handles.

Just a reminder of his athletic ability.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulEF3STQ1V4&feature=related