Some claim that the Boston Celtics kicked off the ‘Big 3’ era in the late 2000s. They put together a tough, dominant trio in Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen; with an up-and-coming Rajon Rondo making his way into the league as well.
Together, the Celtics became one of the powerhouses in the Eastern Conference, making it to the NBA Finals twice and winning a ring. However, their honeymoon was over as soon as Allen joined the Miami Heat, then their biggest rival.
For years, the Celtics’ championship team held grudges towards Allen and didn’t hesitate to let it be known. Finally, they put their beef aside and Allen was in attendance at Garnett’s jersey retirement ceremony.
Ray Allen Skipped Jury Duty To Attend Kevin Garnett’s Jersey Retirement Ceremony
As nice as it was for NBA fans to watch these three Hall of Famers bury the hatchet, it didn’t come without trouble for Allen, who skipped jury duty to attend the ceremony and is now facing a bit of a legal turmoil:
(Transcript via the Miami Herald)
“Allen was among 14 permanent and alternate jurors originally picked in early March for the federal trial of Jorge Aponte Figueroa, who was the only defendant of those charged who had not struck a plea deal with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The trial was initially scheduled for March 14. But after he was selected as a juror, Allen asked the judge for a favor to start the trial the following day because he had to be a presenter at the jersey retirement ceremony of former Celtics teammate Kevin Garnett on March 13.
To accommodate Allen’s trip to Boston, Cooke set her trial for March 15. But Allen didn’t show up. Her courtroom deputy, Ivan Marchena, tried to reach him and left messages with Allen. He didn’t respond. So the trial started without him, and the judge issued an order to ‘show cause’why Allen should not be sanctioned for failing to appear as a selected juror.”
Allen is expected to be heavily fined for failing to show up to court, although it’s not like he can’t afford it anyway. At least, that shows how much he truly wanted to be a part of Garnett’s special day.
