Paul Pierce is approaching legend status in D.C. His fiery leadership, playoff buzzer beaters, and playoff near buzzer beaters have stolen the hearts of Wizards fans after just one season in the district. It would be a shame to see him go into the wide plains of retirement, or the Clippers, with so much unfinished business left with the Wiz. Luckily for the team and its fans, a man who is as big in the restaurant world as Paul Pierce is in the basketball world is willing to broker an arrangement just to see Pierce in a Wizards uniform one more season.
.@paulpierce34 if you stay with us @WashWizards Sir one more season I personally will cook for you,1 night a month..
— José Andrés (@chefjoseandres) May 28, 2015
José Andrés is a big deal in D.C., as he owns nine restaurants in the area, everywhere from fine dining to food trucks. If you’ve never been to one of his restaurants to eat the food and are wondering just how good a cook he is, know that he once beat Bobby Flay in Iron Chef America. And he is a huge Wizards fan as you can see by the view he had of Pierce’s one tenth too late buzzer beater in Game 6 against Atlanta. So to have six free meals cooked for you, possibly in your home, by this man is a huge, huge deal. Will it be enough to keep Pierce in the district one more season? I’d sure as heck consider it.
But the lure of playing for former coach Doc Rivers might trump everything. And if it comes down to food, there’s one thing to consider: There’s a Wolfgang Puck’s Bar and Grill in the Staples Center. If he gets involved and ups the ante with some free meals to bring him to L.A., it’s going to be a tough fight for his services. Andrés had better hope that Wolfgang Puck is a Lakers fan.
(Photo of Pierce by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
