The raucous crowd at the Air Canada Centre could sense it: Their Toronto Raptors were just one shot away from completing an incredible rally and winning Game 7.

But with all of Canada buzzing, Paul Pierce stepped up, blocked the Raptors’ final shot attempt, silenced the city of Toronto and sent the Brooklyn Nets to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

“It felt great,” the Truth said of his series-clinching block. “I’ve said it before, it feels so much better when you do it on the road because you know you’ve earned it.”

Brooklyn Nets v Toronto Raptors - Game Seven

After the clutch block, Paul marched around the Air Canada Centre, blowing kisses to the Raptors fans. But the kisses weren’t a taunt—No. 34 had nothing but praise for the Toronto fans who provided an extremely difficult environment for the visiting Nets.

“This is one of the best environments for basketball. As far as a road crowd, the noise, the enthusiasm, this is as tough as it’s going to get,” Paul said. “You were against not only the 15,000 in the building, but you were against the other 15,000 sitting outside…All we’ve got in this building—20 people who want us to win. It feels great when you come out a winner in that type of environment.”

That proved to be a perfect ecosystem for a late rally. Brooklyn held the lead from the second quarter all the way through to the finish, but the Raptors closed the gap to just one-point late. After a steal with just six seconds left, Toronto was set up for the game-winning shot, when Paul came through with the massive block on Kyle Lowry to give the Nets the 104-103 victory and a 4-3 series win.

Paul finished with 10 points, four rebounds, two steals, one assist and that one big block. Afterward No. 34 identified it as the biggest block of his storied career.

“Nah, I don’t think at this magnitude,” he said. “On the road. Game 7. You’re playing for your lives and you’ve got to sell out for your team… I saw him go up, I went up with him, got my hand on the ball. Game over.”

The Truth had a strong start to Game 7. He netted six first-quarter points off a pair of threes, including the game’s first shot from deep. He later knocked down his second triple to close the quarter. Both came off feeds from point guard Deron Williams.

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But after their nice starts, both Pierce and Williams soon found themselves in foul trouble. After resting to start the second, Paul re-entered around the four-minute mark and immediately knocked down a mid-range jumper.

Later in the second, Paul took a fast-break feed from Joe Johnson and finished with a flush underneath to help Brooklyn build an eight-point lead at 61-53 going into the break.

Early in the third, the foul issues came up again for Paul. He picked up his third and fourth fouls in less than a minute’s span and promptly checked out at the 8:51 mark in the third frame.

He stayed on the bench for the rest of the quarter and had to watch his teammates preserve the lead. The Nets did it mostly with defense, holding Toronto to just 20 points to keep the lead at eight going into the final frame.

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Paul started the fourth on the floor, but he quickly picked up his fifth foul and checked back out. Watching from the sideline, the confidence and winning attitude he has helped to build in his teammates paid off.

Last year without No. 34, Brooklyn’s season ended with a first-round Game 7 loss to the Chicago Bulls, so Paul was glad to see that his presence helped to move the Nets along in the playoffs.

“It’s so gratifying and to get the Game 7 that they didn’t get last year, to bring in the veterans to help them control that attitude, control the locker room, ease everybody’s tension and not be nervous and just be mentally ready in these types of games and being in this environment,” Paul said. “Not a lot of guys have won a Game 7 on the road and to get a win, that’s huge for our psyche.”

With one of their top fourth-quarter options in foul trouble, Johnson emerged as the clutch offensive force for Brooklyn, netting 13 points off 6-of-11 shooting in the final frame. His play helped to keep the Raptors at bay for much of the quarter.

However, playing for their playoff lives at home, Toronto cut the lead down to one, 104-103, inside the final 10 seconds. On an inbound pass with 8.8 seconds left on the clock, Shaun Livingston was looking for the Truth, but the pass was stolen away by Toronto’s Terrence Ross, who hurled the ball of Paul’s leg as he was going out of bounds to give the Raptors possession with 6.2 seconds remaining. As the Air Canada Centre whipped into frenzy, No. 34 was in disbelief, and the Raptors called their last timeout to set up the final play.

Nets v Raptors Eastern Conference Quarter Finals Game 7

On that last play, the Raptors put the ball in the hands of their dynamic guard, Lowry, who had led the rally with 13 fourth-quarter points. Lowry was looking for two more that would give Toronto its first playoff series win since 2001.

The former Villanova standout drove the lane and managed to slip through the defense of Kevin Garnett and Williams, but Pierce was there with the help. Lowry hoisted the game-winning shot, but was denied by the Truth, and the Nets escaped with the one-point win.

“Sometimes it’s about being in the right place at the right time,” No. 34 said, “I really didn’t have a great offensive game. I was in foul trouble most of the night and sometimes you’ve got to find ways to help your ballclub win.”

The moment was an affirming win for the Nets, who brought in Paul and former Boston teammate Garnett to provide a veteran presence, playoff experience and clutch playmaking ability to the team, as head coach Jason Kidd said afterward.

“That’s why he’s here,” Kidd said, “to make plays.”

NEXT UP

The victory set up a conference semifinal matchup with a familiar foe for Paul and his teammates: the Miami Heat.

On a personal level, the Truth has developed a bitter rivalry with Miami through several intense playoff series while with the Boston Celtics. No. 34 said he is eager to take on Miami star LeBron James, whom he has battled with countless times over the years.

“I rank LeBron as one of the greatest players to ever play the game,” Pierce said. “I consider myself a great competitor who wants to be in those moments, who wants to play against who people call the best. Right now, he’s the best player in the league and I think as a competitor you are always looking for that challenge and he’s the ultimate challenge.”


 Miami Heat v Brooklyn Nets

So far while in Brooklyn, Pierce has met that challenge with fervor. The Nets went a perfect 4-0 against the two-time defending NBA champions during the regular season, as Paul led the way with 21.3 points per game—his highest average against any opponent this season.

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However, he doesn’t quite see Brooklyn-Miami as a rivalry at this point. But as the teams prepare to do battle in the postseason, he is ready to start something with his new team against the champs.

“Rivalries start with them as teams. We had a rivalry with them as Celtics. It’s not a rivalry with Brooklyn yet. You can’t create rivalries in the regular season,” the Truth said. “I think they build in the playoffs, years of series of going at it. So you can’t really say it’s a rivalry. Miami is the favorite this year, they’ve won two championships.”

Brooklyn will look to dethrone the Heat in a seven-game series that will begin Tuesday night in Miami. Game 1 is set for a 7 p.m. EDT tipoff and will air on TNT.

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