Kevin Garnett Reveals Why Celtics Teammate Paul Pierce Never Won MVP

Apr 13, 2013; Orlando, FL, USA; Boston Celtics small forward Paul Pierce (34) and center Kevin Garnett (5) congratulate each other during the second half against the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center. Boston Celtics won 120-88. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Kevin Garnett got hilariously real with his Hall of Fame Boston Celtics teammate Paul Pierce during a recent conversation on their show "Ticket & The Truth."

More news: Celtics' Jayson Tatum Explains Why He Still Travels with Boston Despite Injury

The 6-foot-11 big man earned MVP honors while with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2004. Pierce did get named Finals MVP while winning a title alongside Garnett in Boston circa 2008, but the best he finished in regular season MVP voting was seventh, in 2008-09.

Pierce did finish among the top 14 recipients in votes five times.

Garnett broke down to Pierce why he never ultimately won the award.

Only your day one can call you out and still have your back 🤣

All episodes of TICKET & THE TRUTH out on our YouTube. pic.twitter.com/PD4RZwpeVB

— KG: Certified (@kg_certified) November 4, 2025

“To be honest I thought you was gonna be MVP at some point, but your ass don’t play no defense," Garnett joked. "[Another player will] say something to you, you get mad, that’s when you play D.”

Garnett, a 12-time All-Defensive Teamer and the 2008 Defensive Player of the Year, knows of what he speaks.

More news: Celtics Guard Predicted to Have Breakout 2025-26 Season

Pierce was hardly chopped liver as an NBA player, even if he did some deficiencies on that side of the ball. A 10-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA honoree, the 6-foot-7 Kentucky swingman averaged 19.7 points on .445/.368/.806 shooting splits, 5.6 boards and 3.5 dimes a night over the course of a 19-year career.

Funnily enough, Pierce grew up in Inglewood as a Lakers fan, and although he's back living in Los Angeles (as is his comrade Garnett), his revised Boston allegiance seems pretty permanent.

Pierce's Complicated Relationship with His Hometown Team

During his playing career, Pierce developed a temperamental relationship with his hometown team. The Lakers — then led by Hall of Famers Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol — clashed against Pierce and Garnett's Celtics in both the 2008 and 2010 NBA Finals.

Boston, whose roster also included fellow future Hall of Famer Ray Allen and eventual four-time All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo, vanquished LA during their first clash. But the Lakers, fresh off beating Dwight Howard's Orlando Magic in the 2009 Finals, outlasted the Celtics in an ugly seven-game series during the 2010 Finals.

Starting center Kendrick Perkins got hurt and missed Game 7, when an exhausted Bryant put his head down and drove inside to draw free throws.

For more news and notes on the Boston Celtics, visit Boston Celtics on SI.