Celtics legend Paul Pierce disrespects Rudy Gobert by saying no American player considers European players ‘tough’

Rudy Gobert had an altercation with Alex Caruso after the Bulls guard tried to hip check him on a box out.

Celtics legend Paul Pierce disrespects Rudy Gobert by saying no American player considers European players ‘tough’

Paul Pierce believes Rudy Gobert and other European players are not tough

Rudy Gobert had an altercation with Alex Caruso in yesterday’s game. Although Caruso’s intentions were not ill, Gobert’s reaction was seen as too much by everyone.

Now Paul Pierce added to the backlash by suggesting that no American player considers Europeans such as Gobert tough. As they were discussing this topic on Undisputed, Paul Pierce came up with this analogy.

In NBA, nobody considers European players tough, especially from France. It's the truth. In general, they are nice people. It's not something we respect as a tough guy. You are defensive player of the year, but that's not intimidating nobody. When I hear Rudy Gobert come up with these words, I know guys around the league is kina laughing.
Paul Pierce said

Pierce believes Gobert’s comments about Caruso would not be taken seriously by anybody. He believes that Gobert and other Europeans are considered gentle and nice. Pierce thinks trying to talk tough will not make a player sound or look tough. Gobert has been subjected to a choke from Draymond Green this past year, and moreover, American players willingly take on Gobert in rebound or defensive battles.

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Just as it was in this scenario with Alex Caruso, a player 8 inches shorter and a lot lighter than Rudy Gobert. Caruso boxed out Gobert to try and get the rebound. It showed that he was not intimidated by the taller and bigger Frenchman.

Paul Pierce also brought up Victor Wembanyama into the mix

During the conversation, Paul Pierce also brought in Victor Wembanyama into the context. The rookie is also a big man but will never be considered tough enough to intimidate any American-born player. Although the analogy might be controversial, there could be some truth to the former NBA Champion’s thought process.

None of the European players in the league are considered tough. They rely on their deft skills and high intelligence to get the better of the much more physically tougher Americans. Most players from the United States base their careers based around their physical skills, such as Green.

This means his logic is not wrong that Europeans are not tough. To top it off, talking smack about another player’s unintentional play will not be taken seriously by Americans.

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