The comradery shared by former teammates in the NBA is never far and in between. Former Miami Heat All-Star Chris Bosh knows this all too well, as he congratulated his former teammate Ray Allen on his induction into the Naismith Hall-Of-Fame via Twitter.
Congrats to my brother Ray Allen on the hall of fame nod. Much deserved!
— Chris Bosh (@chrisbosh) September 7, 2018
The honor in itself is one only slightly shy of the obvious goal for every NBA player– win a ring. Ray has shared the pleasure of both having won two titles in Boston and Miami, respectively.
By the time of his arrival in Miami, Allen had already cemented his legacy as one of the deadliest sharpshooters in history, holding the current title of ‘All-Time Leader in 3-Pointers Made,' which was solidified during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers on February 10, 2011. Allen and Bosh shared a brief yet victorious time in Miami together, as Allen played from 2012-14 helping push the Heat to two consecutive Finals appearances.
He'd help save the Heat in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals, hitting a game-tying 3 pointer that is arguably one of the greatest shots in history.
Bosh, who made the air-tight pass to Allen in the corner for his glorifying moment, remembers the moment all too well according to USA Today's Alex Kennedy.
“I can't describe the feeling of the game,” said Bosh, “Just something we didn't want to give up, and we stayed with it and we knew it was going to be a battle. It's always difficult playing at this level but we stuck together, stayed with it, and don't know how we pulled it out but we pulled it out. We didn't play our best basketball, but it's all about perseverance.”
Allen recalls his shot selections in the series as a make -or- break situation as well, ones he knew that would be ‘one for the books' as he recalled to Paul Flannery of SB Nation.
“There's no target,” he recalled from earlier in the series, “I don't aim. If I aim that's when I'm missing. The way I look at it is just get the ball in the air. You do it over and over again you should never have a target.”
‘Oh the familiar places' would be the only way to describe his moment in that game-tying shot as he describes it.
“Once the ball came off the rim, I just knew to get to the three-point line,” Allen said, “We needed a three. Two points isn't going to cut it. So my mental checklist is really to have my legs ready and underneath me so when the ball comes, if it comes, I was ready to go in the air.”
Allen and company would go on to win the Finals and make another trip in 2014, before losing in a rematch to the Spurs , leaving Allen to ultimately decide and choose retirement. He was inducted along with fellow inductees Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, and Grant Hill on Friday.
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