BOSTON -- The trial of three men accused of stabbing Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce opened Tuesday with lawyers claiming each was wrongly identified in the nightclub fight two years ago.

	Pierce

William Ragland, 20, Anthony Hurston, 33, and Trevor Watson, 35, are charged with armed assault with intent to murder and related charges in the Sept. 25, 2000, fight at the Buzz Club in Boston's theater district. Each has pleaded innocent.

Pierce, 24, recovered from his injuries and returned in time to start the basketball season late that fall.

In opening statements, lawyers acknowledged that each man attended a private party at the club the night Pierce was stabbed. But they said none was involved in the fight.

"This was a barroom brawl. People were being scattered all over. There's going to be confusion in that testimony," said Thomas McKean, Ragland's attorney.

Prosecutors claim it was Ragland who started the fight, confronting Pierce after Pierce struck up a conversation with his female cousin.

Assistant District Attorney John Pappas said Pierce did not know any of the men who attacked him and did not provoke the fight.

Pierce was stabbed at least eight times in the chest, abdomen and back, and struck across the face and head with a bottle, Pappas said.

Watson's attorney, Martin Leppo, said none of the security guards or bartenders on duty that night identified Watson as one of the participants in the fight. He said Watson stood out because of a large Indian head tattoo on his arm and would have been noticed if he had been involved in the fight.

Hurston's attorney, John Swomley, suggested that police rushed to make arrests in the case because of Pierce's celebrity status.

Ragland, Hurston and Watson have claimed that police targeted them because they are associates of the rap group Made Men.

Pierce is expected to testify about his memories of the fight. The defense, however, said Pierce has been unable to positively identify any of his attackers.