He was the most expendable of the Celtics' cornerstones. The Celtics treated him like it, and he went somewhere that made him feel more wanted.
Business vs. Personal in a nutshell.
I think Tim was right. It depends on definition.
I don't think dissatisfaction with an employer/workplace and going to what you think will be a better working environment is any more or and less legitimate an action than exercising your rights as employer regardless of what your employee wants, which is basically what the Celtics did.
Personal would be Ray slandering Danny in the press, or airing grievances with Rondo, or something like that. Ray acted like a professional, at the end of the day he just didn't want to play for the celtics anymore.
Here's the issue I'm having with that - you're deciding between 2 employers and both offering the same role. You have history with Company A and you go to them and say, "I might come back if you make it worth it. $27 million dollars total probably get's this deal done." Company A says, "we don't really have the budget for it. We can give you $12 million dollars total, and we're willing to address some of the grievances you have such as long-term stability."
Then Company B - Company A's biggest competition in the current market - comes along and says, "We like what you bring to the table. We can only give you $9 millions dollars total - not as much as your most recent employer, but we can give our word that you don't have to worry about long-term stability. Even if we can't put that in writing."
Who do you choose from a strictly business perspective?
That's assuming a lot of things, the biggest of which that Ray Allen thought staying in Boston was the best option for him next year and going forward, and for his family.
He's got a longer-term deal, a team with a longer championship window, and who knows what else Miami offered him. A fresh start can be worth quite a bit as well.
Where do I make that assumption? If you're looking at the Decision from a business, financial perspecive, Ray left money on the table to play the same role. That pretty much invalidates the argument in my eyes.
Ray was uncomfortable being offered in trades by Danny, and he wanted to play somewhere where he felt "wanted", Miami sold that to him and that's where he is. Was he trying to stick it to the C's? Only Ray Allen knows that for sure. But to say its strictly business, is a bit misguided.
With thay said, I feel I should point out that I was amongst those who didn't think Ray was a good fit here any longer, not in the short term or the long term. With Paul still being here, I feel strongly that whatever wing we get to compliment him needs to be more versatile offensively and more athletic. At the end of the day, I think Ray Allen leaving Boston is best for our ballclub.