Would you take Ray Allen back? Why or why not?

[LarBrd33]

My thoughts from the other thread:

I didn't blame Ray for leaving.  Whether you want to admit it or not, he was pretty disrespected and under-appreciated here.  Every year they tried to trade him.  That final year they decided to start an unproven Bradley over him.  They DID trade him and the deal fell apart.  In the offseason they went out and signed Jason Terry and had plans to sign Courtney Lee even as they were negotiating with him.  He had several issues with Rajon Rondo behind the scenes.  Meanwhile, Boston lucked into the ECF (Atlanta and Philly in the first two rounds) and realistically was no longer a contender.  Why bother coming off the bench for a fanbase that didn't appreciate him (I saw Ray ALlen trade threads on this board once a week), a GM that didn't want him (tried to dump him at least 3 times), a coach who didn't respect his talents (sticking him on the bench behind a kid) and a leader who didn't like him (he and Rondo clashed).  You can't blame him.

Also the Miami/Boston "Rivalry" is severely overblown.  They just happened to be the team to eliminate us two years in a row... I don't think of them as a "rival".  It was a good situation for him.  I'm not even rooting against Miami in the playoffs.

I'd be totally in support of him coming back in some capacity.  Ray is a class act.  Would be great for him to retire a Celtic.  But it's not happening.  All the reasons he left are all the same reasons he'll never return.  Boston is on the verge of the lottery... In Miami he's contributing for a contender in the Finals.

[Monkhouse]

My thoughts from the other thread:

I didn't blame Ray for leaving.  Whether you want to admit it or not, he was pretty disrespected and under-appreciated here.  Every year they tried to trade him.  That final year they decided to start an unproven Bradley over him.  They DID trade him and the deal fell apart.  In the offseason they went out and signed Jason Terry and had plans to sign Courtney Lee even as they were negotiating with him.  He had several issues with Rajon Rondo behind the scenes.  Meanwhile, Boston lucked into the ECF (Atlanta and Philly in the first two rounds) and realistically was no longer a contender.  Why bother coming off the bench for a fanbase that didn't appreciate him (I saw Ray ALlen trade threads on this board once a week), a GM that didn't want him (tried to dump him at least 3 times), a coach who didn't respect his talents (sticking him on the bench behind a kid) and a leader who didn't like him (he and Rondo clashed).  You can't blame him.

Also the Miami/Boston "Rivalry" is severely overblown.  They just happened to be the team to eliminate us two years in a row... I don't think of them as a "rival".  It was a good situation for him.  I'm not even rooting against Miami in the playoffs.

I'd be totally in support of him coming back in some capacity.  Ray is a class act.  Would be great for him to retire a Celtic.  But it's not happening.  All the reasons he left are all the same reasons he'll never return.  Boston is on the verge of the lottery... In Miami he's contributing for a contender in the Finals.

I agree with most of your points, but disagree on the class act. And how did we "luck," into the finals? That was where our team stepped up the most.. We signed Terry as a back up PG, and Lee as a back up SG. Also Allen came back from a injury, so him retaining the same starting minutes would've been impossible.

He had every right to choose his destiny.

He can say whatever he wants.

In the long run he could've just said straight up. "I want a ring, and I don't care where I go to get it." And then we'd understand..

If you're seriously defending him for his actions, then fine all the more power to you.

[JBcat]

My thoughts from the other thread:

I didn't blame Ray for leaving.  Whether you want to admit it or not, he was pretty disrespected and under-appreciated here.  Every year they tried to trade him.  That final year they decided to start an unproven Bradley over him.  They DID trade him and the deal fell apart.  In the offseason they went out and signed Jason Terry and had plans to sign Courtney Lee even as they were negotiating with him.  He had several issues with Rajon Rondo behind the scenes.  Meanwhile, Boston lucked into the ECF (Atlanta and Philly in the first two rounds) and realistically was no longer a contender.  Why bother coming off the bench for a fanbase that didn't appreciate him (I saw Ray ALlen trade threads on this board once a week), a GM that didn't want him (tried to dump him at least 3 times), a coach who didn't respect his talents (sticking him on the bench behind a kid) and a leader who didn't like him (he and Rondo clashed).  You can't blame him.

Also the Miami/Boston "Rivalry" is severely overblown.  They just happened to be the team to eliminate us two years in a row... I don't think of them as a "rival".  It was a good situation for him.  I'm not even rooting against Miami in the playoffs.

I'd be totally in support of him coming back in some capacity.  Ray is a class act.  Would be great for him to retire a Celtic.  But it's not happening.  All the reasons he left are all the same reasons he'll never return.  Boston is on the verge of the lottery... In Miami he's contributing for a contender in the Finals.

I agree with most of your points, but disagree on the class act. And how did we "luck," into the finals? That was where our team stepped up the most.. We signed Terry as a back up PG, and Lee as a back up SG. Also Allen came back from a injury, so him retaining the same starting minutes would've been impossible.

He had every right to choose his destiny.

He can say whatever he wants.

In the long run he could've just said straight up. "I want a ring, and I don't care where I go to get it." And then we'd understand..

If you're seriously defending him for his actions, then fine all the more power to you.

I thought the plan to go after Courtney Lee started after Ray signed with Miami, not while we were negotiating with Ray.  If I remember correctly Danny wanted both Terry and Ray, and Lee was an afterthought.

[Monkhouse]

My thoughts from the other thread:

I didn't blame Ray for leaving.  Whether you want to admit it or not, he was pretty disrespected and under-appreciated here.  Every year they tried to trade him.  That final year they decided to start an unproven Bradley over him.  They DID trade him and the deal fell apart.  In the offseason they went out and signed Jason Terry and had plans to sign Courtney Lee even as they were negotiating with him.  He had several issues with Rajon Rondo behind the scenes.  Meanwhile, Boston lucked into the ECF (Atlanta and Philly in the first two rounds) and realistically was no longer a contender.  Why bother coming off the bench for a fanbase that didn't appreciate him (I saw Ray ALlen trade threads on this board once a week), a GM that didn't want him (tried to dump him at least 3 times), a coach who didn't respect his talents (sticking him on the bench behind a kid) and a leader who didn't like him (he and Rondo clashed).  You can't blame him.

Also the Miami/Boston "Rivalry" is severely overblown.  They just happened to be the team to eliminate us two years in a row... I don't think of them as a "rival".  It was a good situation for him.  I'm not even rooting against Miami in the playoffs.

I'd be totally in support of him coming back in some capacity.  Ray is a class act.  Would be great for him to retire a Celtic.  But it's not happening.  All the reasons he left are all the same reasons he'll never return.  Boston is on the verge of the lottery... In Miami he's contributing for a contender in the Finals.

I agree with most of your points, but disagree on the class act. And how did we "luck," into the finals? That was where our team stepped up the most.. We signed Terry as a back up PG, and Lee as a back up SG. Also Allen came back from a injury, so him retaining the same starting minutes would've been impossible.

He had every right to choose his destiny.

He can say whatever he wants.

In the long run he could've just said straight up. "I want a ring, and I don't care where I go to get it." And then we'd understand..

If you're seriously defending him for his actions, then fine all the more power to you.

I thought the plan to go after Courtney Lee started after Ray signed with Miami, not while we were negotiating with Ray.  If I remember correctly Danny wanted both Terry and Ray, and Lee was an afterthought.

Hmm, you're probably right. I don't even remember when the trade was, but who we traded for to acquire Lee. Either way I wouldn't take Allen back.

[celts10]

I don't necessarily agree that the Heat are not our rivals. However, I think it all comes down to LeBron. It seems like ever since KG arrived, the Cavs were always battling with us for the top seeds in the East for most of the seasons. Add the two playoff matchups, and then LeBron's decision to go form a new Big 3 down in Miami...the playoff defeats, and I'd argue that the Heat (and LeBron in general) has been our rival.