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When Kevin Garnett gets his jersey retired by the Boston Celtics on March 13, it will mark the second member of the team’s big three being immortalized in the rafters.
But, according to another former member of that championship-winning team, the Celtics should feel morally obliged to celebrate the trifecta of players that helped bring a ring to the city of Boston, and that would mean immortalizing Ray Allen too.
“Wyc Grousbeck, Stephen Pagliuca, I love em’, they came to my wedding, I love em.’ But I will say this, they have to put an end to the pettiness as well, and I’ll tell you why. Paul got his jersey retired; KG is getting his jersey retired in a few weeks. Retire Ray’s jersey, man. Let’s stop with all the b******* and retire Ray’s jersey, man,” Kendrick Perkins said in a recent podcast interview.
The rift between the sharpshooting 2008 champion and his former teammates is well documented. Still, Perkins went one step further and insinuated the rift also stemmed towards the top of the Celtics hierarchy. However, Perkins does have a point. Allen was an integral member of that big three era and played an enormous role in helping Boston lift their most recent championship.
Former Big Three Had Awkard Photo Opp at All-Star Game
Rumor has it that the former big three have buried the hatchet and put all of their previous disputes behind them. Yet, during a photo opportunity over the All-Star break, there was apparent tension in the air when Garnett seemingly refused to acknowledge Ray Allen. So maybe those rumors were wide of the mark.
During the podcast, Perkins noted that he believes the former trio’s differences are potentially water under the bridge because the photo opportunity would have required some behind-the-scenes organization between Garnett, Pierce, and Allen.
“I’m so happy that Paul, Ray, and KG came together. I don’t even care if it was just for a photo because with that photo, it means there was some kind of conversation. That touched me in a different way. This is not only guys I won a championship with, but we spent Thanksgiving together, we spent Christmas together, we spent Halloween together. I’m talking about all of us collectively at Ray’s house.
So whatever basketball decisions were made, and how they went down, I don’t even give a d***, because at the end of the day, our brotherhood and what we built is way bigger than that, and we’re all grown. We’re grown, retired, and got kids that are about to finish high school,” Perkins said.
The Second Picture Tells a Different Story
Sometimes feuds run for so long that you can forget the original cause. And for Garnett and Allen, if it weren’t for the media, that would most likely be the case. So allow us to refresh your memory on the root cause of this well-documented dislike between two former NBA greats.
However, it’s been almost a decade since Allen decided to leave the Celtics for the Lebron James-led Miami Heat, and eventually, you have to rebuild some bridges. And judging by a second picture released at the All-Star Game, it looks like Boston’s championship-winning big three are doing just that.
Unfortunately, there’s been so much bad blood between the trio that a single picture won’t paper over the cracks of the last twelve years. But, it’s a start, and for a Celtics organization that prides itself on a rich history and litany of exceptional players, seeing the trio make amends would go some way to healing some of the scars of the past.
And who knows, maybe that would lead to Allen having his jersey retired in the TD Garden, or perhaps that will always be one step too far.
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