Before the game, a reporter asked Nets coach Jason Kidd if the team was over-reliant on the three-point shot. “No,” Kidd responded. “The three-pointer’s a part of a basketball game.”
It certainly was for Paul Pierce early. Pierce hit four three-pointers in the first 3:50, and was fouled on a fifth, scoring 17 points before checking out of the game and heading to the locker room for an undisclosed reason.
Pierce didn’t even hit the rim on those four threes, all above-the-break, and out-scored the entire Cavaliers team for a big portion of the first quarter. I don’t know if that’s quite vintage Paul Pierce, but it’s most definitely good Paul Pierce.
