Ray Allen



Walter Ray Allen (born July 20, 1975) is an American professional basketball player who is currently playing for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association. He has played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks, Seattle SuperSonics, and the Boston Celtics; and collegiately for the University of Connecticut Huskies. One of the most accurate 3-point and free throw shooters in NBA history,[1] [2] he is a ten-time NBA All-Star and won an Olympic gold medalas a member of the 2000 United States Men's Basketball Team. Allen has acted in two films, including a lead role in the 1998 Spike Lee film He Got Game. OnFebruary 10, 2011, Allen became the NBA's all-time leader in regular season 3-point field goals made, surpassing Reggie Miller's mark of 2,560. OnMarch 11, 2011, Allen surpassed Miller's career total of 6,486 3-point field goal attempts. {| class="toc" id="toc"

Contents
[hide] *1 High school
 * 2 College career
 * 3 NBA career
 * 3.1 Milwaukee Bucks (1996–2003)
 * 3.2 Seattle SuperSonics (2003–2007)
 * 3.3 Boston Celtics (2007–present)
 * 4 Acting career
 * 5 Personal life
 * 6 NBA career statistics
 * 6.1 Regular season
 * 6.2 Playoffs
 * 7 Honors
 * 8 NBA records
 * 8.1 Regular season
 * 8.2 Playoffs
 * 8.3 Finals
 * 8.4 All-Star games
 * 9 Milwaukee Bucks franchise records
 * 10 Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder franchise records
 * 11 Boston Celtics franchise records
 * 12 See also
 * 13 References
 * 14 External links
 * }

High school
The third of five children, Ray Allen was born at Castle Air Force Base near Merced, California, the son of Flora and Walter Allen.[3] A military child, he spent time growing up in Saxmundham in England, Altus in Oklahoma, Edwards Air Force Base[3] in California, and Germany.[4] He attended high school in Dalzell, South Carolina, where he led Hillcrest High School to a basketball state championship.[5]

College career
Allen attended the University of Connecticut from 1993-1996 after being recruited by assistant coach Karl Hobbs.[6] While at UCONN he earned All-Americanstatus and was named USA Basketball's Male Athlete of the Year in 1995. In 1995–96, his final college season, Allen was a first-team All-American and won theBig East Player of the Year award. Allen finished his UConn career third on the Huskies' career scoring list with 1,922 points and set a single-season school record by connecting on 115 three-pointers in 1995–96.

In 2001, he was named honorary captain of the 25-member UConn All-Century Basketball Team. On February 5, 2007, his name and number were honored at Connecticut's Gampel Pavilion during the "Huskies of Honor" ceremony at halftime of the men's basketball game against the Syracuse Orange.[7]

Milwaukee Bucks (1996–2003)
Allen was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the fifth pick of the 1996 NBA Draft. Immediately after his selection, Allen and Andrew Lang were traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for the rights to fourth pick Stephon Marbury. Allen was a member of the NBA's All-Rookie 2nd Team in 1996. His most successful season with the Bucks occurred during the 2000–01 season as he won the 3-point shootout during All-Star Weekend, was selected to the All-NBA Third Team, and led the Bucks, as part of Milwaukee's "Big Three", alongside Sam Cassell and Glenn Robinson, to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost in seven games to theAllen Iverson-led Philadelphia 76ers.[8]

Seattle SuperSonics (2003–2007)
Allen remained with the Bucks midway through the 2002–03 season, when he was dealt to the Sonics, along with Ronald Murray, former UConn teammate Kevin Ollie, and a conditional first round draft pick, in exchange for Gary Payton and Desmond Mason. After an injury-riddled 2003–04 season, he was named to the All-NBA 2nd Team and, alongside teammate Rashard Lewis, led the Sonics to the Conference Semifinals in 2005.

During the 2004 preseason, Allen had a brief war of words with Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, whom Allen accused of alienating teammates trying to prove that he did not need Shaquille O'Neal to win games and championships. Allen told the press that if the Lakers remained a mediocre squad, "in about a year or two he will be calling out to (Lakers owner) Jerry Buss that we need some help in here, or trade me." When asked about Allen's comments, Bryant responded, "Don't even put me and that dude in the same breath."[9]

After the 2004–05 season, Allen signed a 5-year, $80 million contract extension. In the 2006–07 regular season, he averaged a career-high 26.4 points per game while adding 4.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game.

During his Seattle tenure, Allen achieved many individual accomplishments. On March 12, 2006, Allen became the 97th player in NBA history to score 15,000 points. On April 7, 2006, Allen moved into second place on the NBA's list of all-time 3-point field goals made, trailing only Reggie Miller. On April 19, 2006, Allen broke Dennis Scott's ten-year-old NBA record for 3-point field goals made in a season against the Denver Nuggets.

On January 12, 2007, Allen scored a career-high 54 points against the Utah Jazz in a 122–114 overtime win, the second most in Sonics history. Shortly after, he had ankle surgery on both ankles and missed the remainder of the 2006–07 season.

Boston Celtics (2007–present)
Allen guards Joe Johnson of theAtlanta Hawks in Game 4 of the 2008 NBA Playoffs.Allen dunks in Game 4 of the 2008 NBA Playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks.On June 28, 2007, the Sonics traded Allen and Glen Davis, the 35th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, to the Celtics in exchange for Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, and the fifth overall pick, Jeff Green. Shortly after acquiring Allen, the Celtics acquired Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett to play alongside Allen and Paul Pierce.[10]

On November 4, 2007, Allen passed 17,000 points for his career with his first of two 3-pointers in overtime in a 98–95 victory against the Toronto Raptors, in which he sank the game winning 3-pointer with three seconds remaining in overtime.[11]

On February 13, 2008, Allen was named by NBA Commissioner David Stern to replace injured East All-Star Caron Butler of the Washington Wizards, who was out with a left hip flexor strain, for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans. While LeBron James was given the All-Star MVP Award, many analysts, including the TNT commentators of the game, felt it should have gone to Allen, who scored 14 points in a stretch of 2 minutes and 30 seconds in the fourth quarter to seal the win for the East team.

On March 28, 2008, Allen was honored as the 3rd best of the 20 greatest players in franchise history during Milwaukee's 40th Anniversary Team Celebration, but could not attend the festivities because of the Celtics' game against the New Orleans Hornets. The Boston Celtics finished 66-16, and were the #1 seed in the 2008 NBA Playoffs. The Celtics struggled in the first two rounds of the playoffs, losing every single away game, but maintaining a undefeated playoff record at home. The Celtics had defeated the #8 seeded Atlanta Hawks 4-3 and then defeated the #4 seeded Cleveland Cavaliers 4-3 as well. They advanced to the NBA Finals after a 4-2 Conference Finals series win over the Detroit Pistons.[8] [12] [13]

On June 12, 2008, Allen would play all 48 minutes and contribute greatly with 19 points and 9 rebounds in what would become the largest comeback in NBA Finals history, with the Celtics coming back from a 24-point deficit at one point in the second quarter and a deficit as large as 20 in the third. In that game, Allen would make the game clinching layup with 16.4 seconds remaining to give the Celtics a 5-point lead and put the game away.

On June 17, 2008, in the series-ending Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Allen tied an NBA Finals record with seven three-pointers in the Celtics' 131–92 victory of the Los Angeles Lakers,[14] and also broke the record for three-pointers made in a NBA Finals series with 22, eclipsing the previous record of 17 by Dan Majerle and Derek Harper.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14">[15]

On February 5, 2009, Allen was named as the All-Star replacement for Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson. This marks Allen's ninth time on the All-Star team and the second straight year he has made it alongside teammates Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

On February 22, 2009, with his streak ending at 72, Allen broke the Celtics franchise record in consecutive free throws made previously set by Larry Bird (71).

In the first round of the 2009 playoffs against the Chicago Bulls, game one proved to be tough for Allen. He ended up shooting 1–11 from the field, and the Celtics lost by two. In game 2 however, Allen nailed the game winning three-pointer at the end of regulation with two seconds left to cap off an impressive 30 point night.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15">[16] In Game 6, despite a Boston loss, Allen managed to score 51 points. Boston ended up winning the series in 7 Games. He reunited with former teammate and co-captain of the Seattle Sonics, Rashard Lewis in the Conference Semifinals, this time as opponents, however. After 4 games and a 2–2 series tie, his highest scoring game was a 22 point performance in a Game 2 victory.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16">[17]

On December 10, 2009, Allen scored 18 points to reach the 20,000 point total for his career.

On June 6, 2010, in Game 2 of the 2010 NBA Finals in a 103–94 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers, Allen set the record for most three-pointers made in an NBA Finals game on 8–11 shooting. He brokeMichael Jordan's record of six three-pointers in one half by hitting seven in the first half and had tied Scottie Pippen and Kenny Smith's record for most three-pointers in one game in the NBA Finals by half time.<sup class="Template-Fact">[citation needed] Allen also became the first player in NBA history to have two separate games of scoring at least seven three-pointers in the NBA Finals.<sup class="Template-Fact">[citation needed] In the following game, on June 8, 2010, Allen was one miss shy of tying the NBA Finals record of most consecutive missed shots, going 0–13 from the field, including 0–8 from the 3-point line. He did, however, manage to score 2 points from the free throw line.

After becoming a free agent on July 1, 2010, Allen re-signed two year-deal with the Boston Celtics on July 7 worth $20 million.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17">[18]

During a game against the Los Angeles Lakers on February 10, 2011, Allen became the all-time NBA leader in total 3-point field goals made (2,562), surpassing Reggie Miller's record of 2,560. The 35 year-old shooting guard finished the game with 20 points but the Celtics eventually lost 92-86.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18">[19] In the 2010-11 season Allen was named to his tenth All-Star game alongside teammates Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce andKevin Garnett. Also during All-Star Weekend, Allen competed in the 3-Point Shootout, but lost to James Jones of the Miami Heat.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19">[20]

Acting career
In 1998, Allen co-starred alongside Denzel Washington in the Spike Lee film He Got Game as high school basketball phenomenon Jesus Shuttlesworth. Roger Ebert praised his performance and said Allen "is that rarity: an athlete who can act,"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20">[21] while New York magazine described him as "graceful and fast in the basketball scenes" while giving "a somberly effective minimalist performance."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21">[22] His role as Shuttlesworth earned him the nickname "Jesus" from teammates and fans.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">[23]

Allen also appeared as Marcus Blake in the 2001 film Harvard Man.

Personal life
Allen has a borderline case of obsessive–compulsive disorder, to which he attributes his consummate shooting style.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23">[24] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24">[25] He is a member of the Air Jordan brand, which is a subsidiary of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc. Nike].

Allen served as NBA Spokesperson for the Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA program.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-raynbabio_25-0">[26] and was selected as NBA Spokesman for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-raynbabio_25-1">[26] He also started the "Ray of Hope" Foundation to assist charities in several communities.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-raynbabio_25-2">[26]

Honors
On July 2, 2007, shortly after being traded to the Celtics, Allen threw out theceremonial first pitch for a Boston Red Sox game at Fenway Park.*NBA Champion: 2008
 * Olympic gold medalist as member of the United States men's basketball team that played at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
 * 10-time NBA All-Star: 2000-02, 2004-09, 2011
 * All-NBA Second Team: 2005
 * All-NBA Third Team: 2001
 * NBA All-Rookie Second Team: 1997
 * NBA Joe Dumars NBA Sportsmanship Award: 2003
 * The Sporting News "Good Guy": 2000, 2001, 2005<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-raynbabio_25-3">[26]
 * NBA All-Star Weekend Three-point Shootout champion: 2001

Regular season
3-point field goals made, career: 2,684 (as of March 5, 2012)

Seasons leading the league in three-point field goals made: 3 (2001–02–2002–03, 2005–06)

Consecutive seasons leading the league in three-point field goals made: 2 (2001–02–2002–03)

3-point field goals made, season: 269 (2005–06)

3-point field goals made, half: 8, second half, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Charlotte Hornets, April 14, 2002 3-point field goal attempts, career: 6,651 (as of February 9, 2012)
 * Tied with many other players

Playoffs
Consecutive points scored in a game: 19, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers, June 1, 2001 3-point field goals made, 6-game series: 22, Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 2008 NBA Finals
 * Broken by LeBron James on May 31, 2007, who scored 25 consecutive points for the Cavaliers.

3-point field goals made, 7-game series: 28, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 2001 Eastern Conference Finals

3-point field goals made, game: 9, twice 9, for Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers, June 1, 2001 9, for Boston Celtics at Chicago Bulls, April 30, 2009 (3 OT)

3-point field goals attempted, game: 18, Boston Celtics at Chicago Bulls, April 30, 2009 (3 OT)

Finals
3-point field goals made, 6-game series: 22, Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 2008 NBA Finals

3-point field goals made, game: 8, Boston Celtics at Los Angeles Lakers, June 6, 2010 3-point field goals made, half: 7, first half, Boston Celtics at Los Angeles Lakers, June 6, 2010
 * Also holds second (see below)

3-point field goals made, quarter: 5, second quarter, Boston Celtics at Los Angeles Lakers, June 6, 2010

3-point field goal attempts, 6-game series: 42, Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 2008 NBA Finals

All-Star games
3-point field goals made, career: 20

3-point field goal attempts, career: 64

3-point field goal attempts, game: 11 (2005)

3-point field goal attempts, half: 7, second half (2005)

Milwaukee Bucks franchise records
Consecutive games played: 400, from 11/1/96 to 12/20/01

3-point field goals made, career: 1,051

3-point field goals made, season: 229 (2001–02)

3-point field goals made, game: 10, vs. Charlotte Hornets, April 14, 2002

3-point field goals made, half: 8, second half, vs. Charlotte Hornets, April 14, 2002 3-point field goal attempts, career: 2,587 3-point field goal attempts, season: 528 (2001–02)
 * Tied with Tim Thomas (second half, at Portland Trail Blazers, (January 5, 2001) and Michael Redd (second half, vs. Houston Rockets, February 20, 2002)
 * Broken by Michael Redd on December 30, 2009

3-point field goal attempts, game: 17, at Cleveland Cavaliers, December 9, 2002 (2 OT)

3-point field goal attempts, game (regulation): 14, four times
 * 14, vs. Utah Jazz, April 12, 2001
 * 14, vs. New York Knicks, December 4, 2001
 * 14, vs. Charlotte Hornets, February 18, 2002
 * 14, vs. Charlotte Hornets, April 14, 2002
 * Tied by Michael Redd

Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder franchise records
3-point field goals made, season: 269 (2005–06)

3-point field goal attempts, season: 653 (2005–06)

Boston Celtics franchise records
Highest free throw percentage, season: .952 (237/249) (2008–09)

Consecutive free throws made: 72, from December 25, 2008 to February 23, 2009

Highest 3-point field goal percentage, 2010-11 season: .444 (168/378), eclipsing the record set by Eddie House in the 2008-09 season