Youk vs. Ray… Letters to Boston Faceoff

Both Ray Allen and Kevin Youkilis were Boston sports icons for the last several years.  Youkilis spent about 8 and a half years with the Boston Red Sox while Ray Allen spent 5 years with the Boston Celtics. As I’m sure most of you know, neither Youk nor Ray are with their former Boston organizations anymore.  Ray went to the Miami Heat (still not entirely forgiven) and Youkilis was traded to the Chicago White Sox.  Both players wrote letters to their respective Boston fan-bases.  I just wanted to take a moment to share these letters with you guys and see what you think.  

I’ll start with Ray’s because it’s… well quite brief:

Keepin' it brief

“Dear Celtics Fans,

For the past five years, my family and I took great pride in calling Boston Home.  We have loved living in this city, being members of the Celtics family and being part of your community.  These memories will be cherished forever.

From my heart, THANK YOU Boston for this incredible Journey.

Ray Allen #20”

Is this kind of half-hearted or is it just me?  Nowhere does he take time to talk about the Boston Celtics fan base or the organization.  Just ‘Ray Allen #20.’  Yeah I’m still mad that he signed with the Heat but this is pretty lame… isn’t it? 

To put things into perspective, let me show you the final paragraph of Youkilis’ page-long letter to the Red Sox organization and Red Sox Nation.  Keep in mind; this is after several thank you paragraphs and well wishes.

“And, last but no means least, to all the Red Sox Nation, the home of the most dedicated and knowledgeable fans in baseball, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.  That final game at Fenway was the most emotional day of my life on the baseball field.  It could not have been scripted any better.  And to all those kids out there in Red Sox Nation, I can give you my Dad’s advice.  ‘Life is like a throw to first base, always aim high.’

I love you all, and thanks,

Kevin Youkilis”

His last game at Fenway

Man what a classy way to address the fans and the city of Boston.  I won’t lie; I had never been a tremendous Youk fan.  But I gained so much respect for this guy and wish him all the best.  The guy is a class act.  His last paragraph was longer than Ray Allen’s entire ‘letter’ to Boston!  And as you read the letter from Youk, you can just tell how much heart he poured into it.  Seriously, kudos to Youk for being extremely classy towards the city of Boston despite all of the problems he had with Bobby V and the organization in his last year. He was one of the Red Sox most scrutinized players this year and you can see that he still had his heart in Boston.  If you want to read the full letter, and I highly recommend you do, click here.

So Ray vs. Youk… I think Youk wins by unanimous decision with a TKO.  I really thought Ray loved playing in Boston but with all of the recent events and this letter, I’m beginning to doubt that.  I’m sure he enjoyed it, but I’m just seeing a lack of heart right now.  Am I being too critical on Ray?  Perhaps.  But when you compare these two guys and how much they loved playing for their city, Youk takes it no questions asked. 

I mean… how can you not love this city?

Ray Allen is Officially the New Johnny Damon

I got back from vacation yesterday and obviously the biggest story in the New England sports world in the past week is the Miami Heat’s acquisition of shooting guard Ray Allen.  He decided to sign with the Heat for a 3 year, $9.7M deal (less than half of what the Celtics offered him) citing that he wanted to win another NBA Championship and work on his golf swing heading into retirement.  He demanded a 3-year, $27M contract from the Celtics, which was not met.  The all-time 3 point shot leader shot 14.2 points per game with 46% field goal percentage last season and can still make those big threes despite injury problems. 

People have been talking about Ray’s relationship with Rondo and how that may have impacted Ray’s decision to leave, but I’m not really buying that.  I think Ray just wants to play with the Heat because he wants to be carried to a Championship.  The Heat are backed up by the NBA and have freakish athletes (I won’t say his name) who can win Championships.  I guess for Ray Allen the potential for success far outweighs any sense of loyalty or camaraderie. 

He is the new Johnny Damon of Boston.  Johnny Damon, of course, went to the New York Yankees after winning the World Series with the Red Sox in 2004.  After being an elite icon and symbol of Boston, he’s going to the one franchise we hate most. The Miami Cheat… er I mean, the Miami Heat.  Now they got two hairless dudes to shoot threes in Miami.

I reported earlier that Terry is coming to Boston, and as of right now he has the starting shooting guard position without a doubt.  Guard E’Twaun Moore and Avery Bradley will also have to step up their shooting games in the absence of Ray Allen. 

I’ve lost a lot of respect for Ray Allen.  It’d be one thing if he went to ANY other team in the NBA other than the Miami Heat… but he had to go there.  Good luck with your golf handicap, Ray, you’re no longer welcome here in Boston.  I really hope the Miami Heat don't win another NBA Championship in the next 10 years. But when David Stern has your back, who knows?

Terry-ific! The Celtics Sign Jason Terry

The Boston Celtics have signed Mavericks shooting guard Jason Terry on a three-year contract.  The Celtics will be using their $5M mid-level exception to sign the 34 year old, and Terry will earn a little more than $15M in his tenure with them.

There are a few things to say about this move.  The first is that the return of Ray Allen is looking more and more unlikely.  It has been reported by multiple sources that Allen is exploring options with the Miami Heat (WHY RAY!? WHY!?), and the Los Angeles Clippers and will visit each team at the end of this week. 

Makes me sick…

Jason Terry is a 2011 NBA Champion with the Mavericks and brings veteran leadership and grit to the Celtics.  He is also a former Sixth Man of the Year (2009) and fourth on the NBA’s all-time list for 3 pointers-made. In his illustrious career, Terry has averaged 16.1 points per game and is a 38% 3-point shooter.  Last season, Terry averaged 15.1 points and 3.6 assists per game, along with 37.8% shooting from 3-point range.

Terry is a guy who will go out and give you his best every night.  He’s a competitor who wants to win.  After a disappointing first-round playoff sweep at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Mavericks organization made no attempt to sign Terry to a contract extension.  He was pretty upset, understandably so, because he was a key player in the 2011 Mavericks championship and was essentially snubbed by Mavs owner Mark Cuban. 

This probably marks the end of the Ray Allen era in Boston, but I’m happy Celts GM Danny Ainge went out and acquired a guy like Terry.  Terry will succeed in Boston and will be a key player in the Celtics season next year.  The guy can go big when he’s feeling it, and when you have Kevin Garnett on the floor with you its hard not to feel intense.