LeBron James has had many illustrious teammates over the years. Among them, Ray Allen has the title of hitting one of the most important shots in their career. The former leader in all-time 3-pointers made spoke out about how he didn’t speak to George Karl, another Milwaukee faithful after failing to deliver in Cream City.
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When Ray Allen plied his trade in Milwaukee, he was nothing short of spectacular. Before being a journeyman, he was seen as a player capable of leading a franchise to a title.
While it didn’t happen, they came close and the Bucks tried a few times to be instrumental in this win. In their bid, to win, they recruited George Karl as head coach.
And while initially, the fit seemed perfect, according to Ray, it was a show of cloak and daggers.
The rift that was there and why Ray wasn’t at fault
Throughout the story in Milwaukee, we could see that something was not right. After making the Conference Finals in 2001, the following season, they missed out on the playoffs entirely!
And in dramatic fashion, they missed the playoff on the final game of the regular season. The reason behind it was that there was evidently a silent rift between the coach and the player.
“there’s nothing I can do right for this guy.” thought Allen. In a tell-all with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Allen revealed why he had such a strained relationship with Karl.
“The funny thing is, I never had any confrontation with George, It was always, ‘George doesn’t like you.’ I was hearing this from other people. Why? I think he didn’t like the way I was, the type of person I was. There was a Sports Illustrated article about me that said I wore a suit to games, and Karl said I cared more about being cool than being tough. Ultimately, he just didn’t like me.” Allen said.
Ray Allen refused to acknowledge George Karl’s disdain
And all of this was never made clear to the public. But the implosion at Milwaukee was a sign in itself. And just another year later, the Bucks traded Allen away.
He would blossom into one of the best shooting guards of his generation. Allen would go on to win two championships, with the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat. He would also cement himself as one of the greatest three-point shooters of all time. Just ask LeBron James.
Allen still has never spoken to Karl.
“I don’t feel the need to say anything to him,” He says “It was clear that he didn’t like me. He did what he did to move me on. I can’t waste time or energy on people who don’t like me.”
While the feud is still very much active, neither party is willing to talk. So, till then we will have to play a waiting game.
Also read: “It’s All the Same to Me”: Luka Doncic Doesn’t Care About His Brilliant 50-Point Game vs Rockets
