Instead of nipping at playoff-absent LeBron James’ heels for the title of Best Player in the NBA, Kevin Durant might turn around to find Jayson Tatum creeping up behind him.

At least that’s how Hall of Famer Paul Pierce sees the lopsided playoff series between two of his former teams.

“I think Jason [sic] Tatum maybe surpassing Kevin Durant right before our eyes in the NBA hierarchy,” Pierce wrote Saturday on Twitter.

Tatum is averaging 29.7 points, eight assists and five rebounds per game in the first round for the Celtics, who hold a commanding 3-0 series lead after winning 109-103 in Brooklyn on Saturday night. Durant is averaging 22 points, 5.3 assists and 5.3 rebounds.

The biggest difference is that Tatum is connecting on 42.9 percent of his shots as he seems to have the answer for every Nets run, while Durant has struggled to find space and is shooting 36.5 percent as he forces up tough shots. Tatum beat the buzzer with the winning layup in Game 1, and sealed the Game 3 victory by stealing a pass from Durant and throwing down a dunk with six seconds remaining.

Pierce worked as an NBA analyst for ESPN until last August, when he was fired for publishing a racy video on social media. He was MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals as part of his 15-year career with the Celtics and spent one disappointing season with the Nets in 2013-14.