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Paul Pierce reveals truth about wheelchair incident in 2008 NBA Finals

By Connor Grott

June 6 (UPI) -- Former Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce came clean about his famous wheelchair incident during the 2008 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Before the Toronto Raptors' win over the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night, Pierce revealed that the actual reason he left the floor was to use the bathroom.

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"I have a confession to make," Pierce said during a pregame broadcast. "I just had to go to a bathroom. I had to go to the bathroom. It was something [that] went down and I had to go to the restroom."

In Game 1 of the 2008 Finals, Pierce collapsed to the floor after defending Lakers star Kobe Bryant and appeared to suffer a serious injury. He was carried off the floor and eventually placed in a wheelchair to help him reach the locker room.

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Yet minutes later, Pierce emerged from the tunnel at TD Garden and quickly re-entered the game. He knocked down a 3-pointer that gave the Celtics a third-quarter lead as Boston went on to win the game.

Pierce's wheelchair usage and lightning-fast return sparked many conspiracy theories among NBA fans. The current basketball analyst took to Twitter on Wednesday night to share more clarification about his story.

Pierce signed a ceremonial contract and retired with the Celtics in July 2017. Boston retired his jersey and raised it to the rafters of TD Garden in February 2018.

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