The NBA has changed in many obvious ways on the court, but also in terms of player mentality. Jumping ship to another contender, or worse yet a rival, was once considered blasphemous. Though, Boston Celtics great and NBA Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett gained a new perspective regarding the hard feelings he felt for his former teammate Ray Allen.

Allen left Boston to join the Miami Heat in 2012, where he would make one of the most iconic shots in NBA history en route to winning a championship in 2013. Garnett took the business decision as a betrayal at the time.

Ironically, it was a former on-court rival who brought on this newfound understanding and caused the Big Ticket to patch things up with the legendary sharpshooter. Garnett opened up in a NSFW interview with Kevin Hart on the comedian’s popular show, Cold as B***s.

“The passing of Kobe {Bryant} and all of us getting older helped me understand that life is not given to none of us. It would have f****d with me if something were to happen to Ray and I didn’t get a chance to amend this,” Garnett said.

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The Big Ticket and Allen defeated Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant to win the 2008 NBA Finals. The Mamba then paid the Celtics back when he won his fifth title in 2010. Obviously, Bryant left a strong impression on Garnett away from the game as well.

KG was a notorious trash-talker and old-school type of player. But tragedy has a way of tearing down the walls of even the most unwavering individual. Garnett can’t make up for lost time with Allen, but he has clearly decided life is too short to be bogged down by basketball grudges a decade later.

The times they are a-changin.