Does Ray Allen Understand He's Past his Prime?

"I was very loyal to the city, and I love the city, but when it came time to keep me in a uniform, [the Celtics] did everything they could to seem like ... to not want me to come back," Allen said. The Celtics could have given Allen more money, but he had already been sent down the pecking order as the 2012 season finished up.

As Allen fought through an ankle injury, he saw his starting spot taken by Avery Bradley, whose energy and defensive ability made Allen more of a bit player until he was needed again in the playoffs as Bradley sat out with shoulder injuries. Allen says the trend of him being used less -- and of less talented players taking his spot on the court -- was what he saw if he stayed in Boston.

"In Boston, they were telling me they were going to bring me off the bench -- 'We're going to play you less minutes' -- and all I asked was, 'How are you going to use me, because the last two years you've been using me as decoys,' " Allen said. "You're running all these plays for me just to pass it to somewhere else, and you're not putting me into any scoring opportunities, and I'm just standing over in the corner the majority of games."

First, let me say God bless everyone who has been following this story. Cuz it just makes me puke.

Next, for one post, let me address the merits of this bunk. 


At 37-years old with a bum leg, exactly whom on the Celtics' roster did Ray Allen think he was better than? Even if Ray could still shoot the three-ball with reasonable success last season, how many hoops was he at least partly responsible for giving up? Better yet, are we allowed to factor in the number of hoops prevented by these "lesser talented Celtics" playing in front of him when evaluating the tradeoff in minutes? 

And if some of the hoops denied by the lesser talented Celtics were denied against an elite player and in an intimidating fashion (say, Avery Bradley blocking D.Wade's dunk attempt, throwing the shooter to the seat of his pants in the process), how do we factor in such energizing, momentum-grabbing displays of athleticism and defense? How do  we evaluate the seed the young buck just planted in the All-Star's head, not to mention the confidence he just instilled in his own teammates?

It sucks to get old Ray.

It sucks even more when you get old and don't know it.

But you want to know what really sucks?

When you start behaving like a middle-aged person afflicted by irritable bowel syndrome, and then go about infecting a locker room with your own special OCD version of self-centeredness, and then, having done that, trying to persuade Boston fans that it was "the other guy's fault," not your's, thereby proving beyond any doubt that fault really lay with you.

But never mind me. 

Just continue playing locker-room lawyer with your old team. I'm sure that will impress your new team a whole bunch.