Saturday, July 7th, 2012 at 12:27 pm  |  89 responses

Ray Allen Felt Disrespected in Boston


After five seasons in Boston, Ray Allen felt he wasn’t getting the respect he deserved. The future Hall of Famer didn’t like how the Celtics dangled his name in trade talks, and his relationship with Rajon Rondo was “too far gone.” Yahoo! reports that Allen wanted to exact revenge on the Celtics, signing for much less with the Heat: “The issues chasing Ray Allen out of the Boston Celtics and into the arms of their most despised opponent stacked higher and higher, and suddenly everything crystallized in the hours basketball’s most persuasive recruiter, Pat Riley, captivated him. The emperor of the Miami Heat sold Allen on never hearing his name in trade talks and a run of championships awaiting him. After all these years, Allen needed to feel wanted again, needed the recruiting, and Riles had such a willing soul sitting with him in the breeze blowing over Biscayne Bay. ‘He felt he was getting respect that he hadn’t gotten from [Celtics president] Danny [Ainge] and [coach] Doc [Rivers] anymore,’ a source close to him said Friday night. ‘…The presentation was incredible.’ Respect comes in different ways, but make no mistake: The Celtics had offered two years and $12 million – respect for someone’s who’s 37 and coming off ankle surgery – and it didn’t matter to Allen. He hated the way Ainge dangled him in trade talks, hated that the Celtics told him he was on his way to Memphis in a deal at the March deadline only to have Rivers later tell him the trade was dead. Allen hated that Rivers didn’t give him his starting job back after he returned from a late-season ankle injury, and hated that it always felt like he was the Celtics star made to sacrifice above the rest. Ainge and Rivers talked to Allen over and over on these issues in recent weeks, tried to smooth over the lingering bitterness, but there was something that Allen couldn’t move past, something he no longer wanted to deal with – the deterioration of his relationship with complicated point guard Rajon Rondo.”

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  • JML-G

    hate it or love it, but now when we know all the little things, Allen to Miami makes the perfect sense and i can wish him nothing but best of luck

  • ALD

    they tried to trade him twice, why not leave… Even tho he had to sell his soul

  • Cheshire

    Here we go again… Everytime a player gets dealt they bash on they old team… If he was man enough he would’ve said this earlier and made it known instead Boston had to sugar coat and baby him. Ray take a hint they wanted you gone back in March!

  • http://slamonline.com The Philosopher

    Uncle Ray Ray…

  • http://minusthebars.blogspot.com don

    Celtics vs Heat rivalry just became even more intense.

  • Conoro

    Soon, Allen will discover how truly disrespectful Boston may be. After his initial return to the Garden, he’s going to be jeered as though the name on the back of his jersey read “Johnson”.

  • Roi

    And ppl thought Allen was pure class

  • http://www.slamonline.com spit hot fiyah

    i think the celts actaully dodged a bullet, that would have been a lot of money for a 37 year old with bad ankles, specially with the money the a reported to have thrown att jeff green, no news about that yet? 40 mil over 4 years they say, haven’t heard it confirmed though. heals?

  • Pop Pop

    An Insider article on ESPN says Celtics offered him a no trade clause for this contract btw

  • RunNGun

    Remember Steve Nash…

  • Sue

    Ray dissapoint and disrespect many of his fans. Celtics was a family, something especial. Old school versus the circus of Miami, a team with a volatile fan base. Celtics gave him 24 for 3 years and he will play for 3 for the Heat. He play awful last season and versus Miami especially. Avery was the starter because he was playing better, but Allen still play more minutes. Childish. All Celtics made sacrifices. Now the Celtics never will retired his jersey. Nor Miami, Sonics or bucks. Is worthy for a ring more? This lack of class. With him, Rondo, Avery, Terry, Pierce and maybe Green, all healthy, they had his options. He has break all good memories. Go elsewhere, but not Miami for 5 bucks!! And he will not be a starter with the Heat. Allen is opportunistic.

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7C0vd-L5lg Redd

    My butthole is itchy…

  • Sam

    @sue He didn’t disrespect anyone. Rayray left because boston disrespected him. His fans should be happy they get to see him on a championship calibre team down on south beach! He’ll have his jersey retired by one of the teams he’s played for.

  • Ash

    Wow!! You ppl are taking this too seriously. Its really not a big deal. These storylines makes it more intresting tho

  • thor

    Is Redd being trolled or is that just his thing?

  • eZ

    So nash can go to the lakers uncritisized, even after making his own comments about it beforehand, but ray allen, as a FA, can’t go to the heat? After two+ years of beying trade bait, taking paycuts, even being traded for real, and ainge tough-talking about how he wil even trade pierce for the right pieces if they presented themselves, after the celtics endorse bradley and even sign terry before allen made a decision. When Allen has always proved to be one of the most classy players in the league… Now he joins the Heat and gets called all kinds of names?
    The lot of you , critizing him, disgust me…Bunch of hypocrites…Bad losers and dishonest is what you are.
    It’s sports, not war. There are no rivalries, there’s only competition. And loyalty needs two sides.

    Oh and Ray on the heat will be a great succes, all he has to do is to hit those open shots, the ones all those heat role players missed all regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs. Crunch time lineup Wade, Allen, Battier, James, Bosh, yeah baby…
    Btw battier and allen are going to be best buds.

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    Redd is being trolled hard and some of y’all are f*ckin dumb. The same ones calling Ray a traitor are the same ones who were praising Nash for leaving Phoenix. He sold his soul because he went to the Heat instead of a team that constantly used him as trade bait? Get the f*ck outta here

  • http://www.soundcloud.com/tray-5 T-Ray

    That wasn’t nbk that was me

  • ALD

    lol… i find it funny when ppl dnt understand sarcasm… o well cry me a river with judas

  • http://www.soundcloud.com/tray-5 T-Ray

    Lol my mistake ALD I was looking at a different comment hence why I didn’t mention your name. I don’t talk indirectly.

  • Feez_22

    Mike miller, a guy that has been oft injured the past 2 yrs in miami, has seen more loyalty from the heat then what ray allen has seen from the celts in that same timeframe. what does that tell you guys honestly? Even with mike being on the hook for 3 more yrs and 18M coupled with the fact that he has a million injuries… the heat guaranteed him that they would not amnesty nor trade him. now look at ray allen… not only did the celts try to trade him twice in the last 2 yrs, they tried to trade his ass in 2009 to the pistons with rondo for stuckey and rip (yall dont remember that do u?). he lost his starting job coming off an injury and was never able to regain it. Not only that, they signed jet to be his damn replacement. he had 2 go with everyone and their mama in boston calling him a old washed up version of himself even though it was really injuries that were setting him back. rondo’s disrespectful attitude just compounded. so really… when you talk about loyalty, how is it that mike miller, a guy that is on a 5 yr 25 m contract yet is the team’s 6th or 7th best player, guaranteed a spot with no trades or amnesties yet ray allen, a 4-5th best celtic whom i believe makes 10m per being dangled in trades all the time as if he’s 2nd class? seems like the heat are the more loyal franchise 2 deadeye 3pt shooters to me… how about yall?

  • G-Man

    This is a no brainer for Allen. At this late stage in his career, why wouldn’t he want to be with a championship team filled with young players on their way up and longing for an additional stop & drop shooter from 20 -25 feet. Perfect fit all the way around. And we all know that Riles knows exactly what he’s doing. Allen is quality.

  • Jose

    really, once they signed terry, it was over. . .i mean where do you find time to play Shuttlesworth with Bradley and JET . . .

  • AiRsMiTh

    I would have liked to see Ray go out with the Celtics, but I don’t hold anything against him for his decision. Can’t say I blame the guy.

  • http://www.slamonline.com Redd

    Yeah but if that no trade clause thing is true, then I’m sorry you can’t argue that he didn’t betray the celtics.

  • Feez_22

    no trade clause? so thats supposed to wipe away 2 yrs of the celts dangling him in trades huh? stop trolling. betrayal is hilarious when the celtics had him 95% traded to the grizzlies and failed. celts werent loyal to ray… so it was his time 2 look out for himself

  • wet

    I can’t not believe how ignorant people can be. Yelling traitor and sell out. They tried to trade him the last two years, he was told he was going to Memphis. He’s doing nothing they didn’t try to do. Only he’s making sure they don’t get anything back for him this time.

  • http://www.michaelcho.com M Cho

    Forget all the Ray Allen haters. The man did what’s right for him in a tough spot. He took his lumps from the Celtics, didn’t complain and then left when he had the freedom to. I’m a die-hard Celtics fan and I don’t begrudge Jesus Shuttlesworth anything – of all the big 3, he sacrificed the most of his game to fit in with the team. I wish he wasn’t going to the Heat, but he’s a HOF player and he’s earned the respect of Boston fans.

  • Robb

    the reason why they wanted to trade you ray is because you werent doing ish in the playoffs. disrespected my a*s.

  • http://www.nicekicks.com Chris

    How the is anyone gonna actually hate on Ray for doing this? The man bites his tongue his whole career about anything and everything that is going on, says one thing and then is blasted? I hate the Heat, but Ray Allen is the absolutely only reason I’ll cheer for them now.

  • Heals

    So what, KG HATED playing C, never wanted to play, BUT that’s what the team needed so he did it. The team played it’s best basketball of year when AvyB was starting beside Rajon, plain and simple. He “hated” this and that; give me an ucking break, Rajon effing Rondo has heard trade rumors ever since the New3 came together, Rajon effing Rondo had 3 future HOF’s and a no non-sense coach BARKING at him all the time for 3 1/2 years about how he should play and when they wanted the ball. Poor RayRay. How about how teh C’s tried EVERYTHING in their power to accomodate him during the last 2 weeks of regular season and playoff run to eleviate any stress on his ankle…

  • Heals

    @Chris, when has RayRay bite his tongue? He was vocal about Kobe in the past, then when confronted with his opinion, backed off. He was vocal about being paid for jersey sales in the Olympics, only to let DWade take all the “heat” for his comments. Now this, please, I love his game and approach to it, but don’t act like SugarRay doesn’t have any diva in him…

  • Heals

    I said it before and I’ll say it again, fam is fam and he ain’t fam. KG and PP34 LOVE each other, KG and Rajon are brothers, Quis is always there for his teammates. Doc is the realest coach in L (I see you Pop, Thibs), there’s no agenda with him, just the team and how to maximize it’s potential. So if Rayray caught feelings about his role, that’s on him…

  • JML-G

    KG and Rondo actually had same beef as Allen and Rondo, but they squashed it and is good now..

  • http://www.soundcloud.com/tray-5 T-Ray

    *Strikes match puts it to the swisher and nods to Heals*
    Going in

  • http://www.slamonline.com Redd

    Exactly, everyone seems to forget this is a business and all players get put into trade scenarios. Did the Celtics ever pull the trigger? And saying they’ll add a no trade clause shows their loyalty to him.

  • Heals

    I’m totally cool with him leaving, but don’t try to play the woe is me card on your way out, when any of those who watched all 66+ this year (and 82+ the previous years) that this was about disrespect. Please, and then to have it play out like it did, with this little week long where is he going drama, c’mon now…

  • http://www.google.com john levell starks

    JESUS TAKES HIS TALENTS TO SOUTH BEACH!!!!

  • Heals

    Perk was traded mid-season and CRIED over it with his teammates in GoldenSt, he still talks to those around the team on the regular. Quis nearly broke his neck and couldn’t play, so the C’s shipped him to Sac and filled his roster spot for a playoff run a couple years back. Where does Quis play now? JeffGreen failed the heart exam so Bos withdrew it’s $9 mil a year offer last year, where’s JeffGreen going to play next year? Exact-effing-ly, disrespect my a$$. Just say you want a ring and are taking less $$$ to do it (both totally admirable), but to get bent out of shape over percieved disrespect, I;m not having it. PP34 was offered to NJ for the same deal that eventually landed GWallace there, where’s PDouble playing next year? I’m even alright with him blaimng Ainge alone, BUT Doc too? Naw, child please…

  • Heals

    Ahhh, alomost forgot to exhale there…

  • LA Huey

    Can’t wait to see the first time Ray and Rondo foul the other.

  • Otero

    Some of y’all sound like some straight up 6!tches he’s going to Miami stop crying ladies lmao

  • Marcus

    Celtics Vs Heat Rivalry? Ful the heat. Our rivals are the Lakers. The heat are just a fad.

  • http://abcnews.com charliewinning

    The stupidity around here is astounding. Get over it. This whole “it’s a business” thing runs both ways. Players don’t owe teams any more than teams owe them. Boston tried to trade him, as was their right. He bounced, as was his right. He went to the situation he felt was best for his career without taking into consideration what the Celtics would feel because that was his damn right. The Celtics weren’t thinking about what his best interests were when he was about to be a Grizzlie.

  • Antonio

    Still I can´t believe this, Ray to the enemy, to Miami, please Ray, I know that the blame is Ainge but Miami????

    Legacy´s Ray with Boston will be not the same, Boston old school vs Miami circus.

    Fuck you Miami, fuck Lebron, Wade, all………..

  • Robb

    The reading comprehension from some of you people are disappointing. Thank god heals is posting.

  • RickWitIt

    Ray…always take the more money…

  • Marc

    How Boston disrespect Ray? His season was poor with his knee problems and his inconsistency. And the team offers him more money that any other team. That’s respect and not words. Avery took his job. What he expects? He was injured and not playing at high level. He has no humility. Is going to be a starter at Miami? No. Will he feel disrespect? He is gonna play less with less money. Is that the way he wants another ring? The only guy that takes this whole thing too much seriously is Ray Allen, because he tells the Celtics to give him 8 millions per year and after accept that ridiculous offer from Miami. Play for nothing Ray, you’re a Lebron fanboy. For that Kobe will kiss your ass again. The Nash trade is not equal. He has family reasons and he has not cheated his team. Nash was FA U and decide (to take more money also) a sign and trade and Phoneix receive something in exchange. And the rivalry between Lakers and Phoenix is past right now. The rivalry between Boston and Miami is present. And each team represents some values and Ray betrayed it. At the end, any team will retire his jersey. Boston not after this. Miami not for a reserve player that arrives with his age. Not Sonics. Not Bucks. Enjoy your second ring Allen. You played like a man in Boston but you’re not.

  • Allenp

    Y’all do realize this column doesn’t actually quote Ray Allen right? He didn’t say any of this to a reporter.

  • Marc

    More money with a no trade clause. That’s respect from Boston. You’re gonna take more money here that in other teams and we can’t trade you. He simply want to get another ring without too much effort, in Mike Miller mood. Ok,Ray, take the easy way.

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