Heat call out ex-Celts over Ray Allen

Updated: October 17, 2013, 12:22 PM ET

NEW YORK -- Come Thursday night, when the Miami Heat face the Nets for the first time since Brooklyn's league-shaking summer trade, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade think some former Boston Celtics on the Nets might owe the former Celtic on the Heat an apology.

A year ago there was a stream of vitriol from Boston aimed at Ray Allen after he chose to sign with the Heat in the offseason. Kevin Garnett said he lost Allen's number, Paul Pierce said he hadn't forgiven him, and coach Doc Rivers implied Allen had an ego problem.

Now all three of them are also out of Boston, agreeing to go to teams seemingly on the brink of contention instead of sticking around for Boston's rebuilding project. Garnett waived his no-trade clause so he could go to Brooklyn in a package with Pierce. Rivers engineered his own trade that allowed him to become the coach of the Los Angeles Clippers.All have said in various ways that it was a tough decision but that they wanted to move on to better situations.

That was essentially Allen's position in 2012, and James and Wade aren't afraid to hint at hypocrisy.

"I think the first thing I thought was, 'Wow, Ray got killed for leaving Boston and now these guys are leaving Boston,'" James said.

"I think it's OK; I didn't mind it. But there were a couple guys who basically on Ray for leaving, and now they're leaving. That's the nature of our business, man. I don't know what Boston was going through at the end of the day. I know Ray had to make the best decision for him and his family and his career. Doc, KG and Paul did that as well. You can't criticize someone who does something that's best for their family."

James is sticking up for a teammate and taking a shot at some old Boston rivals in the process. But he's obviously sensitive on this topic because of personal experience. He was roundly criticized, of course, for leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010.

"I can relate to that; you think so? I'm the No. 1 relator," James said. "I've been through it all. I know all about it."

Wade has been slightly more diplomatic, but it is clear this has been a topic of conversation in the Heat locker room in the wake of the trade that sent the two future Hall of Famers to Brooklyn in July.

"We all know the world, how it works," Wade said. "The biggest thing is Ray is happy . If they're happy in Brooklyn, then let them be happy.

"People say things about people when they do something when they themselves would do the same thing. It's about putting yourself in the best situation, and at the end of the day we all do that. You can't really say anything about someone that does it for themselves."

Pierce, Garnett and fellow ex-Celtic Jason Terry are three of James' biggest personal rivals in the league, and Wade has a history with them as well. The Heat and Nets play three times in the next two weeks, twice in the preseason and then in Brooklyn's home opener Nov. 1.

It could be the start of a new rivalry in the Eastern Conference, replacing the once fiery Celtics-Heat rivalry. And like when Pierce, Garnett, Terry and even Allen wore green, the sides expect to see each other in the postseason.

"They have champions on their team, they have gold medalists on their team, they have guys who have been through a lot," James said. "It should be fun playing against them throughout the regular season and possibly in the playoffs."

if we could combine both new york teams we could knock out the heat.

to be fair, the heat could combine with the magic.

>if we could combine both new york teams we could knock out
>the heat.
>
>to be fair, the heat could combine with the magic.

more run when allen bolted. boston blew the whole thing up and is starting over.

As a whole maybe lebron is right, but i just wanted to point out that there was a difference.

That's what I found funny is the big difference and him acting like there's no difference. One guy left and the other two got traded.

Obviously there's some difference between a free agency departure and an exodus, but the bottom line is all three of them left a team for a better shot at a title. Miami clearly gave Ray a better shot. Brooklyn clearly gives KG/Paul a better shot.

It's not like KG and Pierce had no say in whether they were getting traded or not.

Pierce said after the trade: "We are championship driven... We made a lot of money in our careers. We have won a number of awards. At this point right now, we are about winning a championship. Brooklyn gives us the best opportunity."

Those near-exact words could've come out of Ray's mouth after the Miami signing. Same principle.

I suspect that both their comments and Bron's comment are steeped more in fan service than in actual reality, and they all know that both roster moves and trash talking rivals are part of the business. This is mostly just the media asking the right questions and then getting quotes to blow up and run with. I don't believe KG and Pierce would've said those things in complete earnestness, seeing the writing on the wall for their roster going forward and knowing they'd be leaving soon enough. If they did... well, then that's hilarious.

this year they weren't.

If you wanna say allen saw the writing on the wall(the big ass writing) and knew they couldn't compete with mia and bolted, whereas KG and PP thought they still had a chance then criticize KG and pierce for being naive.

But i'm gonna believe that if the celtics were still trying to win with their core and could keep doc, pierce and kg woulda stayed. Didn't KG have to be convinced to waive his no trade clause anyway?

And the other huge difference is that Allen joined the team they just been scrapping against and losing to for the last 2 seasons, and just won a ring. Pierce and KG joining a team that just got ko'd in the 1st round by wounded bulls squad.

>this year they weren't.

The decision they make is rooted in: "I want a title. Where is the best available option for me to do so?"

Ray saw that Miami had a better shot at winning than Boston. It doesn't matter what Boston thought they were capable of to Ray, it matters to Ray how he can get that ring.

>If you wanna say allen saw the writing on the wall(the big ass
>writing) and knew they couldn't compete with mia and bolted,
>whereas KG and PP thought they still had a chance then
>criticize KG and pierce for being naive.

That's precisely what I'm doing, if KG/PP meant their statements in 100% earnest and weren't exaggerating for purposes of fan service.

>But i'm gonna believe that if the celtics were still trying to
>win with their core and could keep doc, pierce and kg woulda
>stayed. Didn't KG have to be convinced to waive his no trade
>clause anyway?

He did. And he waived it so that he could go to a team with a better chance at winning a title. I'm sure Jeff Green and them would rather have KG and Pierce and be in the playoff hunt, but you don't see him talking about losing their numbers. Movement by vets to win titles is simply business.

the 1st place i thought he overreacted.

The bottom line may be the same, but there are details that make the situation different imo.

leaving a contending team to join the current champions is different then leaving a rebuilding team to join a team that you now make a contender.

Sheeit, what ray did was clearly ring chasing (and I'm fine with that) KG and pierce joining nets ain't ring chasing. Pierce said that this gave him the best opportunity for a chip, but I'm sure we'd all agree that Miami would give him the best opp. If there was a way to get to Miami, would he do it? I'm not so sure. Hence, the difference.

>Sheeit, what ray did was clearly ring chasing (and I'm fine
>with that) KG and pierce joining nets ain't ring chasing.
>Pierce said that this gave him the best opportunity for a
>chip, but I'm sure we'd all agree that Miami would give him
>the best opp. If there was a way to get to Miami, would he do
>it? I'm not so sure. Hence, the difference.

There wasn't an opportunity. It was a salary cap impossibility. He went to the best available place to contend for a ring.

If he stayed in Boston, I'd believe he wasn't ring chasing. If he'd gone to a non-contender, I'd believe he wasn't ring chasing. But he went to the best team that could afford to take him on. And they said afterward that they wanted to win a title and that's why they agreed to leave Boston. Doesn't get much plainer.

It's obvious that they were mad just cuz it was Miami, not because Ray left or because he was "ring chasing." If he'd gone to OKC, I doubt they would've given a shit. If you want to say the situation is different because KG and Pierce aren't going to Boston's perceived rivals, that's a fine explanation. But I don't think the principles of ring chasing change much whether it's aging Boston or beat-up Boston. A better opportunity is a better opportunity.

If it was possible, do you think pp would have gone to MIA? I doubt it. You just said if that was his beef then that's reasonable. Situations are different..we agree. Cool.

lol

... that KG/PP specified that *that* was why they were upset, so it's reasonable for Bron to act like the situations are the same when KG/PP's beef seemed to be more with the departure itself than specifically the Miami rivalry. The nature of the departures themselves are the same.

The only *real* difference is that Boston was still deluded into thinking they'd beat the Heat in the playoffs going into last season, and going into this season they are grounded in reality. That delusion doesn't justify the prompt tossing of Ray under the bus the way they did, especially with the rest of their departures imminent.

But I think we agree on all of that too.

If Ray Allen has a problem, he as a grown man should voice his own opinion to KG and Paul Pierce, not have LeBron be his spokesman for the percieved beef, or ever worse involve Ray Allen if Ray Allen himself doesn't have any emotions on the matter.

He was responding to a question. I see nothing wrong with the best player in the league giving an off-the-cuff response that defends a teammate and throws a shot at longtime rivals.

when they are in the same place at the same time, so miss me with the talking about 'grown men blah blah' bullshit.

Kevin Garnett is a 38-year-old who I'd bet still plays video games 5 days a week & makes animal noises while doing so.

This quote is Lebron as the leader of the two-time world champions using the opportunity to take up for a teammate while calling KG a hypocritical hoe who can kiss the ring at the same time.

>Kevin Garnett is a 38-year-old who I'd bet still plays video
>games 5 days a week & makes animal noises while doing so.

Don't know why though.

http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/464/kgmf.gif

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>when they are in the same place at the same time, so miss me
>with the talking about 'grown men blah blah' bullshit.

When I used the phrase 'grown man', I was referring to the fact Ray Allen is perfectly able to speak on this matter on his own if he feels the need to. He shouldn't need LeBron James to address this first if he feels he needs an apology from KG and Paul Pierce. In my opinion, it makes it appear as if Ray Allen is too timid to speak for himself, muchless that he feels that Garnett and Paul Pierce wronged him. It's completely possible that Ray Allen doesn't care about the matter and LeBron stuck his nose into matters that doesnt' concern him.

I didn't use the phrase to defend Studio Thug puffing his chest last year when he made his initial comment.

'grown ass man' bro

two different things

Ray Allen - Grown man
KG - Grown ass man

and is probably alright with letting his earlier words, his ring & KG's actions speak for themselves.

Mind you I've never really liked Ray Allen from a personal perspective but let's be real, Lebron shooting a dart at those dudes doesn't say anything about Ray being timid.

It says Lebron is gonna speak his mind & call KG out on his bullshit at the same time because he's Lebron James and he can.

that's it...

>that's it...

they can foh with that ego shit
it's pretty much established as fact that rondo is hard to deal with and no one likes him on a personal level
muhfucker can't even hit wide open J yet trying chastise veteran franchise players?
ray said peace on that bullshit
all that aftermath is just dumb extra shit you'd expect from the type of dude who would say another man wife taste like cereal then be scared to square up in that parking lot
outside of deron that whole nets team , including the coach, is hateable as fuck

Weird

There's a whole slew of people in our nation's capital that think Blatche is probably the most easily hateable player in the NBA.

I couldn't believe when he said that

Meanwhile the other 0 they love in DC...

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/gilbert-arenas-instragram-picture-toilet-paper-100-dollar-bills-orlando-magic-washington-wizards-20-million-dollars-100613

The fans.

It had nothing to do with his poor conditioning, ballhoggery, and constant late-night partying resulting in poor on-court effort.

lol

I don't even hate Blatche, but he has made some of the most baffling PR faux-pas I've ever seen.

sometimes he's just so smooth offensively, just fun to watch do his thing in the post, then he'll do some bonehead shit

I definitely think he's improved both his work ethic and his public image since leaving DC

>I definitely think he's improved both his work ethic and his
>public image since leaving DC

He did look better last year. It was evident a change of scenery was the only thing that would've helped.

HAHA

lopez is cool mainly cause he's nondescript
rest of them dudes fuck em

then you don't know KG*. "losing" his number is a bit much, but I maintain that they'll be friends after their careers are over. if they're not then KG deserves the criticism. The situations are much different though, and Doc also blamed himself for Allen leaving.

*if this happened in the 80's, people today would romanticize how intense and committed KG was. there would be zero criticism.

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they were salty he was going to a better team and now that same will be busting them in the ass in a different location.

in this present reign as he has the credentials
to voice out on a myriad of issues, and he has
since this ESPN interview. Whether people like it
or not, i think this is good for the game. I like
when Miami plays Boston -- now Brooklyn, because
guys get animated and play hard-nosed basketball
that only makes both teams better and more prepared
for playoff basketball.

Call me crazy - but I think Miami & Brooklyn will
have some wars. That's a deep, experienced team.

-->

Breathe through the nose
keep the mouth closed.
Through the blood
Chi goes where the dow flows.

.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOLmIkwCOKk

...then these guys want to act all emo when he leaves on his own free will..

silly shit

the team was old/had peaked and literally everyone inside the org knew it. most notably ainge knew it. think he had loyalty to allen? no, he shopped him. he proved he was serious by dealing kg and pierce.

that is not a critique of ainge, as you probably know i thought he won the deal with the nets and has done the right things to move forward generally. it's just the reality of the situation.

Pierce still got a little life in there, however he ain't a threat and there is a reason why the knicks before game 6 in the first round showed up in black to bury KG, Pierce and Jet and they is old.

meanwhile Ray Allen hit the Money shot and got that new Jewelry. KG and Pierce on that stroll because they were old mens in Beantown and taking up space.