NBA free agency: 30 greatest free agent signings in NBA history

Greatest free agency signings in NBA history: 20. Ray Allen- Miami Heat, 2012

Whether he wanted to try something new or if he simply wanted to get away from the curmudgeons that were the late-2000s Celtics, Ray Allen’s decision to sign a two-year, $6 million deal with the rival Miami Heat proved to be a smart one.

First, let’s get to the pettiness, which seems to center around Allen feeling underappreciated by the Celtics. Reportedly, Allen wanted a three-year, $24 million deal to stay in Boston, but general manager Danny Ainge felt otherwise, offering only a two-year agreement worth $12 million. This is how Allen responded, per his autobiography (h/t Sean Deveny of The Sporting News:

"“So let me see if I got this straight,” he wrote. “You want to pay me less money. You want to bring me off the bench. You want to continue to run the offense around Rondo. Now tell me again exactly why I would want to sign this contract?”"

In his two seasons with the Heat, the future Hall of Famer occupied a floor spacer role more than anything else. His minutes dipped from 34.0 in his final year with the Celtics to 26.1 in his two with the Heat. Still, Allen was at the higher end of what most teams expect from a role player, especially for one that was approaching 40.

In his two seasons in South Beach, which ended up being the last two of his career, Allen averaged 10.3 points with a .446/.398/.894 shooting line and .114 WS/48. Of course, Allen his best known for this somewhat important 3-pointer in this kinda meaningful game against the Spurs:

Yeah, Allen made the right decision.