LA Clippers legend makes bleak prediction about the team

You might think calling Paul Pierce an LA Clippers legend is misleading. Fair enough. The former NBA superstar spent the last two seasons of his illustrious career on the Clippers. If anything, he's a Celtics legend.

On the other hand, Pierce is a Los Angeles native. The time he spent on the Clippers was brief, but it carried some emotional weight. So, when he's critical of the team, it hurts.

Pierce has had a lot to say about the Clippers this year. Recently, he made another pessimistic comment about the team.

Pierce predicts first-round exit for LA Clippers

Who knows? Perhaps Pierce has his own hurt feelings. Watching your former - and hometown - team struggle to this extent must be difficult.

Moreover, Pierce may have a point. It's been said that the NBA champions are typically the best team to get hot at the right time. At the moment, the Clippers are...let's be charitable and say "not hot".

Should we be taking Pierce's words with a grain of salt?

LA Clippers legend makes explosive statement on explosive program

Are you familiar with First Take? No? We have two questions: what is the address of the rock you've been living under, and does it have any vacancies?

The entire purpose of the program is to generate controversy. It's a hot-take factory. If you're going to say something that isn't going to incite controversy, Skip Bayless won't put it on his show.

So yes, we should take Pierce's statement with a grain of salt. Still, we should also assume that it has a kernel of truth - and not because it's coming from The Truth.

The LA Clippers need to right the ship. Time is fleeting. This team was built to compete for an NBA title. If Pierce's prediction comes true, it could be a challenging offseason for the Clippers.

Whether you consider him a franchise legend or not.