Fourteen years after Ray Allen betrayed the Boston Celtics by ditching them for LeBron James and the Miami Heat, the Celtics fanbase as a whole has gone from outright hating him to being divided, as one half chooses to focus on his part in the glory of the Big 3 days while the other focuses on him opting not to ride into the sunset with them.
Anyway, with all the time that's passed and the fact that Boston has dealt with much worse characters since then (*ahem* Kyrie Irving), we must not forget the caliber of player Allen was in Boston. Why even bring this up now? Because Klay Thompson recently discussed how his legacy compares to Allen's.
Thompson, who has more or less become the new version of Miami's Ray Allen by migrating to South Beach, discussed how the two all-time sharpshooters compare.
Thompson took exception when his role as a complementary star on those formerly elite Golden State Warriors teams was questioned, particularly in comparison to Allen, who, in his prime, was the best player on a conference finals team.
TALK THAT TALK KLAY pic.twitter.com/nAR7trUW0T
— NBA Pass (@nba_pass) August 20, 2026
Without getting into the comparison, Thompson definitely played a role into why Golden State was so dominant for so long. However, he was thrust into an elite team by being paired with an all-time player like Curry from pretty much the jump.
The same can't be said about Allen.
Allen didn't get a proper chance to prove himself until Boston
Before he became a Celtic, everyone around the NBA knew that Allen was among the best in the NBA, but because his team, more often than not, lacked the necessary firepower to fight against the top teams, Allen never got the chance to showcase himself. The only two times Allen's abilities were on full display were in 2001 (ECF with Milwaukee) and 2005 (WCSF with Seattle).
It was only once he formed the Big 3 that the league finally got to see what happens when you put one of the best three-point marksmen next to two of the NBA's biggest stars.
The other facet to consider is that while Allen's calling card was his three-point shot, he was also a pretty talented scorer. Because of him, Boston's play didn't suffer all that much when Kevin Garnett went down in 2009.
Allen is still an all-timer and arguably the greatest Celtic to not have his number retired. That's what makes his legacy a little underrated knowing that he didn't truly get his chance to shine until he joined forces with the elite like Thompson did for almost his entire tenure with the Warriors.
Celtics fans will likely be divided on Allen for all eternity, but one thing they can all agree on is that Allen absolutely held up his end when Boston asked him to from start to finish.
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