Paul Pierce on Lakers: 'There's no way I could go there'

Paul Pierce, who agreed to a three-year deal with the Los Angeles Clippers this summer, played 15 seasons with the Boston Celtics, which is all the reasoning he needs to never want to compete for their rival, the Los Angeles Lakers.

"It's a dream come true to be able to come home, finally," said Pierce prior to the NBPA's Inaugural Player Awards on Sunday night, Boston Globe's Gary Washburn reports.

"I grew up a Laker fan but playing on all the Boston Celtic teams . . . there's no way I could go there - so this was the next best choice. And it's always been a dream to play in front of my family and friends."

The Oakland, Calif., native had a legendary run with the Celtics organization from 1998 to 2013, ranking third in games (1,102), second in points (24,021), and first in steals (1,583).

He won his first and only championship with the team in 2008, playing under current Clippers head coach Doc Rivers. It was the first of two Celtics-Lakers NBA Finals matchups in the span of three years.

This past season, the 37-year-old small forward averaged 11.9 points on 44.7 percent shooting, including four rebounds and two assists in 73 appearances with the Washington Wizards.

His new deal with the Clippers will be worth roughly $10.5 million with a team option for the third season, according to Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski.