Miami

Udonis Haslem has one message for the ex-Boston Celtics players still beefing over Ray Allen’s decision years ago to leave Boston for Miami: The Heat would have beaten them with or without the sharpshooter.

Allen left the Celtics in 2012 to compete for a championship alongside LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh in Miami. He later hit the pivotal shot in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finalsagainst the San Antonio Spurs that helped send the series to Game 7, which Miami won.

“It’s not like the year before with Ray they beat us,” Haslem said, according to The South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “Put it this way, it wasn’t the similar situation to maybe Kevin Durant going to the team that beat him. It was, you got your ass whooped with Ray, and we got Ray and we whupped your ass again.”

Last week, Kevin Garnett brought Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Glen Davis, and Kendrick Perkinsonto his Area 21 segment of TNT’s Inside the NBA. He didn’t bring Allen on, however, and the group of ex-Celtics champions sounded off on why Allen’s decision to leave broke a bond they had built in Boston.

Pierce summed up the group’s sentiments best:

“I was initially hurt by the whole way everything went down. … I just figured if it was me leaving, I would have [called each player and said] ‘this is what I’ve been thinking about,’” Pierce said during on Area 21. “That’s what I was hurt by when Ray didn’t at least give us a heads up about it. And then, to go to the team [that we were competing against.] I think I would have took it better if he just talked to us about it. I don’t know how his relationship was with Doc, it was kind of souring at the time because Avery was getting more minutes. So I can understand all that.

“But I just felt like we should have had a conversation, and it was have settled over a little bit more. I don’t think we would have been as salty. … I just think if we would have talked about it, it would’ve been a little different than it is now. Now it’s uncomfortable. I haven’t talked to Ray in some years now. It’s just different.”

Allen responded with a Facebook post (that has since been deleted) of a picture of him in a Heat jersey elbowing past Rondo. It was captioned “The power to push limits.”

Still, Haslem was disturbed by the Celtics’ shunning Allen based on a free agency decision. He understood, he said, because it was a rivalry of sorts between Boston and Miami at the time. But Haslem maintained that Miami beat Boston when they had Ray Allen in the past.

“I mean, they got to let that go,” Haslem said. “I think when you get to a point where you’re a free agent, you have the opportunity to make the best decision for you. Quality of life: Boston, Miami? Ahh, you guys can figure that one out.