Paul Pierce has been in the news many times during this past year, and he is continuing to make headlines.
On Tuesday, he revealed in an interview with the Boston Globe that he is partnering up with The Hub Craft in order to release recreational marijuana products under the “Truth” brand.
The products, which include edibles, concentrates, cannabis lotions and a signature strain of marijuana flower, will be sold in Massachusetts.
“I have such a great connection with Boston,” Pierce told Dan Adams of the Boston Globe, “so I’m excited to bring the brand there first and educate people on the plant — how it can help in everyday life and also in sports and recovery.”
After being stabbed at a Boston nightclub in September of 2000, Pierce turned to marijuana, which he says helped save his career. Pierce preferred marijuana to what the team doctors were prescribing him at the time.
“Athletes don’t even know what’s in these pills. The league doctors just say, ‘Take this, take that, here’s a prescription,’” said Pierce. “We get addicted to that stuff. It’s so harmful for your body. You don’t realize your liver and all your other organs are taking a pounding.”
At the time, the NBA had not yet halted testing its players for marijuana, but that didn’t matter to the 43-year-old.
“I was dealing with a lot of depression and anxiety and sleep issues — a lot,” said Pierce. “So I really leaned more on cannabis. But it was difficult, man.
“You really couldn’t do it while you were playing during the season because of the tests, but there were times I couldn’t even help it — I took an edible or smoked a joint just to get some sleep, and had to deal with the consequences. It was really bad for me early on.”
Pierce showed how happy he was that the world was easing up on marijuana laws.
“It’s a blessing that the world is finally catching up,” said Pierce. “They don’t know what us athletes go through — our bodies and our mental state of mind.”
With the products set to start releasing later this year, it will be interesting to see how this business venture ends up going for the 2008 NBA Finals MVP.
