The 2008 NBA championship-winning Boston Celtics still have an ongoing feud with Ray Allen. After leaving the Celtics to join the Miami Heat, many on that Celtics team were hurt by the fact that Allen did not reach out to them about his decision. Let’s dive in for a bit:
Kevin Garnett, the big ticket, has his own show on TNT, “Area21” where he discusses NBA news and games along with guests. Last night, Paul Pierce, Big Baby, Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins all joined Garnett and they discussed the disrespect they felt from Allen.
Pierce looks to be the most upset man on the panel, and truth be told, he has every right to be.
In an interview with Marc J. Spears of ESPN, Pierce felt betrayed by Allen’s decision.
“That was a tough situation because we thought it was betrayal,” Pierce said. “That’s why the whole thing evolved like it did with us not talking to him. Ray didn’t really have the best relationship with Rondo anyway. That was nothing. [Rondo], me and Kevin, he didn’t have any talk with us [before his Miami decision].”
On Area21 last night, Pierce elabrated on his thoughts.
“I thought we formed a brotherhood here in Boston,” Pierce said. “Not only how we carried ourself on the court, and off the court. And I just figure if it was me leaving, or KG leaving, I would have been like, ‘Rondo, Perk, Baby, this is what I’ve been thinking about.’ That’s what I was hurt about when Ray didn’t just at least give us a heads up about it.”
Garnett also weighed in: “People don’t understand that this is real life for us,” Garnett said. “The situation with Ray is very sensitive. When we all talked about doing this reunion, we were talking about guys we considered loyal and part of this group.”
Perkins was the starting center for the center for the Celtics during the championship run. Perkins elaborated that he isn’t disappointed in what Allen did, its how he did it.
“It ain’t what Ray did, it’s how he did it,” Perkins said. “Just a lack of communication, man, however, it was. But at the end of the day, I feel like time heals all wounds. … Who’s gonna break the ice? At this point in time, I don’t feel like it’s nobody on here to break the ice. I actually feel like it’s on Ray to break the ice.”
Earlier this year, Rondo said that Allen is not invited to the anniversary celebrating the 08 Celtics championship run. In an interview with Marc J. Spears of ESPN, teammates of Rondo also told him not to send an invite.
“I asked a couple of the guys. I got a no, a no head shake,” Rondo said of Allen, who famously left the Celtics in 2012 to join the Big Three in Miami. “It will be a long story about that, but it is what it is. I don’t know a good analogy to put this in. It just wasn’t the greatest separation. It wasn’t the greatest thing that could’ve happened to us as a team, a bond. We were at war with those guys [Miami]. To go with the enemy, that’s unheard-of in sports. Well, it’s not so unheard of. It’s damn near common now.
“The mindset we had. The guys on our team. You wouldn’t do anything like that. It makes you question that series in the Finals … Who were you for? You didn’t bleed green. People think we had a messed-up relationship. It’s not the greatest. But it’s not just me. I called and reached out to a couple of other vets and asked them what they wanted to do with the situation. They told me to stick with what we got [without Allen].”
Earlier today, Allen posted and deleted a picture titled, “the power to push limits.”
