It seems like we’re getting to a point where Ray Allen‘s relationship with members of the 2008 Boston Celtics is being repaired. Both sides of the “beef” are willing to put their past differences behind them, to the point that Allen is going to join the rest of the team when they celebrate the 10th anniversary of their title this summer.
This made the fact that Allen didn’t attend Paul Pierce‘s jersey retirement ceremony on Sunday kind of unfortunate. Allen did pay tribute to Pierce on Instagram two days after the ceremony, but still, it would have been really cool to see Allen in attendance.
Thanks to former Celtics coach Doc Rivers, we know why Allen wasn’t able to make it.
Rivers told Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe that, while Allen really wanted to come, he wanted the night to be about Pierce and didn’t want to be viewed as a distraction.
“Listen, I think that’s going to happen,” Rivers said of a potential Big Three reunion. “I did think it would have been great for Ray to have been there. But there’s just angst right now, and in Ray’s defense, I know he thought about coming. I can tell you that, because I talked to him personally.
“He didn’t know if he should. He didn’t know if it was the right time. He really didn’t want to take anything away from Paul or be a distraction, and he won’t be, and that’s what we’ve got to convince him of. If he would have been there, the fans would have cheered for him. That will happen eventually; you’ve just got to figure out when.”
To Allen’s credit, his heart was in the right place, even if Rivers made it clear his fears were off-base. Even if Sunday wasn’t the day, though, we’ll get the full 2008 Celtics reunion soon enough.
