Don't laugh, Paul. Shit ain't funny.

Uh-oh. The Paul Pierce opt-out stories keep getting more serious. (Boston Globe)

With Paul Pierce in a position to opt out of the final year of his contract, Ainge sounded less certain about how that situation would play out. Pierce has until June 30 to decide whether he wants to pick up the $21 million option.

“I don’t know the answer,” Ainge said. “I do have doubts. I’m not certain of what Paul may do. I don’t know, because he may able to get a long-term contract somewhere else. It may be better than what we have. I don’t know the answer. We haven’t gotten to that point. That’s something that we’ll address next week once the draft is over.”

I don’t know why Paul Pierce would leave $21 million on the table when he has clearly lost a step, has a million miles on those legs of his, and is playing for the same team he started his career with. I mean, this guy has a chance to be looked upon as an absolute legend, a Celtics lifer in an era when players hop around from team to team more often than Tiger hops around from woman to woman (okay, maybe not THAT often). If I’m Pierce I fulfill the last year of my contract, sign a three- or four-year deal after the upcoming season, and stay a Celtic forever. My heart tells me that’s still what Pierce will do, but I never thought it would really be a question.