ESPN trolled Paul Pierce with a surprise cake for his 40th birthday

Paul Pierce leaves the court to a round of high-fives after the Celtics took Game 1 of 2008 NBA Finals, 98-88.

October 13, 2017

1 minute to read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdfShYECIUU

To celebrate Paul Pierce’s 40th birthday on Friday, ESPN naturally got a cake for their new full-time analyst. And printed atop the frosting was a memorable photo from the 2008 NBA Finals.

But not just any photo.

The picture showed the former Celtics forward getting rolled to the locker room in his infamous wheelchair after he injured his right leg in Game 1 against the Lakers. Pierce eventually returned to the court and helped lead Boston to a 98-88 victory, but his colleagues still saw the big 4-0 celebrations as an appropriate time to revive the image.

Upon receiving his cake from a chuckling crew, Pierce smiled and asked, “Whose idea was it?” He shared a photo of the masterpiece on Instagram, with the caption: “Peace out 30’s headed to the distinguished 40’s club.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BaMYsEBHqlk/?hl=en&taken-by=paulpierce