Ray Allen was inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame this past weekend. His feud with current Los Angeles Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo needs to come to an end.
The NBA celebrated true basketball greatness by adding a new class in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, this one featuring Jason Kidd, Grant Hill, Ray Allen and Steve Nash.
There are so many stories about all of the enshrines to get into. However, I would like to Lake Show Life as a platform to honor some players that are blessed to get in the Hall with an NBA Hall of Fame special and the linkage to the Los Angeles Lakers.
We delved into Hill’s enshrinement and how he was the LeBron James of his time before injuries derailed his career.
Hopefully this article will mend a fence that should have been done years ago. The feud has gone on too long for two players that I like and respect a ton. Lake Show Life presents…
NBA Hall of Fame Special: Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo…Please Make Peace!
Ray Allen was a no-brainer to make it into the Hall of Fame. Before Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson started a new wave of marksmanship from way outside the three-point line, Ray Allen was considered by most as the best shooter ever in NBA history alongside another Hall of Famer Reggie Miller.
It’s easy to see with the 2,973 career 3-pointers Allen has knocked down in his career. Ray Allen teamed up with Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to make the “Big Three” the blueprint on how teams were built in free agency until very recently.
He is one of only three players in NBA history to be an All-Star with three different franchises. The other two? Former Lakers centers, Shaquille O’Neal and the late Wilt Chamberlain. Allen is a two-time NBA champion, winning with the Miami Heat (2013) and the Boston Celtics (2008). Who can forget the last second 3-pointer to save one of LeBron James’ titles in Miami in game six to send the game into overtime? However, there is a sad story to be told between the titles.
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With any sporting event that goes on, there is always a storyline that underlines the players in the event. Ray Allen was the headliner the week leading up to the Hall of Fame Induction ceremony.
Ray Allen’s feud with some of his teammates of the 2008 NBA championship squad reared it’s ugly head again when he stated on ESPN’s, “The Jump” program that he hadn’t heard from any of his old teammates to congratulate him on his Hall of Fame induction.
Ray Allen calls his tenure in Boston the “most important time in my life”. How he wants to be remembered for being a part of the Celtics accomplishments during the “Big Three” era and not on how he exited and left for Miami in 2012.
Here’s what Ray Allen says on the subject courtesy of ESPN in a news conference Thursday after he received his Hall of Fame jacket the day before the induction ceremony…
"“People look at how I left, but I look at how I lived while I was in [Boston]”…”That to me is the most important time in my life because I had never won. And I was able to win. And that’s probably the most important thing I want people to remember, is the time we spent together.”"
Sadly, many of his former teammates will remember the exit. The first in line will be new Lakers’ free agent, Rajon Rondo.
Former Celtics coach and current L.A. Clippers Head Coach, Doc Rivers spoke out on the situation and praised Allen for the great things he did in the Celtics run. Plus his sadness that more couldn’t be done to celebrate Allen’s upcoming induction courtesy of Boston.com.
"“I would have love to [had] a celebration for Ray,” he said. ” Not a lot said here about it. You know, Ray won us a title. He really did. I think he should be celebrated. I think he should be celebrated in Boston. He’s responsible for that banner. He really is.”"
But did the issues and the ultimate rift have Rajon Rondo and Doc Rivers in the middle of it…
Ray Allen may have the answer talking about his final season with Boston courtesy of NBA Sports Boston.
"“There were parts throughout the season where I was starting to feel this type of resentment toward me on the floor. Other people would tell me at first, and I would ignore it, because I don’t like people getting into my team business because this is my teammate. But people would always say, “He looks you off. When you come off a screen, he sees you and he doesn’t pass you the ball when you are open.”At first, my family would say it, because they watch intently, and they…they know the game. And so I just said, “Listen because you have said this before about other guys, but I don’t engage in that.” So then, I started paying attention to it, because I started noticing it.And I went to Doc. And I asked Doc, and I said, “Doc, I think dude is looking me off, and he’s not passing me the ball. And I don’t know why, but I’m coming off, I’m running the plays that you are drawing up, and he’s not passing me the ball. And He’ll shoot it or he’ll go in the other direction.”And Doc’s response was, “I know. We talked about it as a coaching staff.” I was like, “Wow. So you knew this whole time and you didn’t say anything. You didn’t address it to me, and more importantly, you’re not addressing him about it.”I think his response or his way of handling it was, this when he wanted to bring me off the bench.”"
Let’s be clear here, this is Ray Allen’s side of the story. Rajon Rondo obviously did not get along with Allen by this time and we will never know if this is a true story or not. Rondo has a notorious reputation for being stubborn and rubbing teammates and coaches the wrong way.
The Chicago Bulls and the Dallas Mavericks will gladly attest to that. Even Rondo’s last days in Boston weren’t cheery. But again, we all grow and mature, something Rondo has done over the last few years.
However, Ray Allen’s benching at the time made sense. Avery Bradley was coming into his own and he was Boston’s best wing defender. He’s fallen off the last couple of years with injuries slowing him down, but when he was in Boston, he was assigned to lock down the opposing team’s best scorer. Allen leaving for Miami obviously had more to it than the benching in Boston. He came off the bench most of the time he spent in Miami.
This feud has taken on a mind of its own since then…
Ray Allen was not invited on the tenth anniversary get together on Area 21 hosted by Kevin Garnett on TNT. All of the major players in the caption on the Celtics team has retired except for Rondo.
“It was more than basketball for us… It felt like a sour breakup.”
— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017
Pierce, KG, Rondo, Big Baby & Perk shared their thoughts on Ray Allen. pic.twitter.com/DjQKrFMxAT
Couple this with a trip put together by Rajon Rondo to celebrate the 2008 team without Allen is sad.
This is an article that I hope all players get to read because this feud needs to end. If we all remember the 2010 Finals, this easily could have been a Celtics squad that could have won game seven. They just ran out of gas and the “Mamba Mentality” of Kobe Bryant willed the Lakers to victory.
That loss had nothing to do with feuds. I have never seen a team fight so hard even in defeat. No one does that without a total team effort and sacrifice. I’m not a Celtics fan. I’m just an NBA fan that likes players that know the game of basketball and plays like it.
What LeBron James truly wants to be built around him in Los Angeles is the blueprint of the team that terrorized him in his first era in Cleveland. Rajon Rondo understands that because he was one of the leaders of that team. On the other hand, Ray Allen used to give LeBron James free throw tips when they were in Miami.
For two players that I consider one of my favorites, I say this…
This is the perfect time to bury the hatchet. Since Ray Allen made his statement about his former teammates speaking out, Kendrick Perkins spoke on Twitter, Paul Pierce said congratulations on TV and Kevin Garnett posted something on Twitter. Come on Rajon, from a fan…
Life is short…let’s end this.
I hope you enjoyed this NBA Hall of Fame special on Lake Show Life.