[mickey7mantle7]

First ballot, without a doubter. Anyone who thinks otherwise needs to watch a different sport

Was gonna ask this until I read^

1st Ballot? As of now I say NO. Hofer right now, yea sure...Elites get that 1st Ballot slot. I do think he's really good, but saying good enough for a 1st ballot selection is a little steep "at the moment".

Don't get me wrong, he has some years left and things could change.

Just My Opinion

[kstjst]

I agree with most people's assessment that the Basketball HOF seems a little easier to get into, but with that said, I believe that the Basketball HOF is more based upon all of the things that exemplifies a great player. Baseball likes to base their selections on numbers and stats. And Football HOF, is much of a mystery to me how they make their selections. Basketball seems to put a lot of players in, but are there really any player in there that is truly questioned on their ability and their play?

Getting back to the real question, yes, I believe Pierce is a Hall of Famer. He was the leader on a team of All Stars. You may argue that Garnet was the best, but I think the driving force of that Championship drive was Pierce. He may have not had the gaudy stats to back it up, but how many guys would you be more afraid of when he was in his prime?

[lsmith242]

Was gonna ask this until I read^

1st Ballot? As of now I say NO. Hofer right now, yea sure...Elites get that 1st Ballot slot. I do think he's really good, but saying good enough for a 1st ballot selection is a little steep "at the moment".

Don't get me wrong, he has some years left and things could change.

Just My Opinion

If Robert Parish, Alex English, and Bill Bradley can be first ballot HOF's then there should be no reason with the body of work that Pierce has put in that he shouldn't be include in that list. Again, consider the complete body of work, and the fact that he will more than likely be the all-time leading scorer in Celtic history by the time his career is over.

[JMarchand1981]

If Robert Parish, Alex English, and Bill Bradley can be first ballot HOF's then there should be no reason with the body of work that Pierce has put in that he shouldn't be include in that list. Again, consider the complete body of work, and the fact that he will more than likely be the all-time leading scorer in Celtic history by the time his career is over.

As a Celtics fan I might be biased in saying this but...I think being the all-time leading scorer for the Celtics means more than being the all time leading scorer for most other NBA teams (Lakers are probably the exception here).

I need to say this, I am a Pierce guy so I am undeniably jaded. His longevity is key to everything. Has he ever been the best player in the league? Nope. Top five? Perhaps in the pre-LeBron/03-04 draft class year. Even then most people, including myself, would have still considered him to be lesser than Shaq, Kobe, VC, AI, Duncan, Nash.

I think a half-decent comparison in perception might be a guy like T-Mac. Now, I don't think T-Mac is a HOF'er. Not by any stretch because he had 4-5 good years but couldn't stay on the court long enough to make an impact. Pierce has 13 or so years in the league and has done the job at a high level. I am pleased to see that a lot of others have relatively the same opinion that I do.