Three baskets, five fouls.
Those were the final numbers of Ray Allen, who spent much of Game 1 of the NBA finals trudging back to the bench after picking up another foul.
And it’s pretty simple for the Boston Celtics: They aren’t going to win with Allen as a spectator.
“Ray has to play,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “We have to get Ray the ball.”
They couldn’t do that nearly enough in their 102-89 loss to Los Angeles on Thursday, because Allen was limited to only 27 minutes because of foul trouble. He took eight shots and scored 12 points, robbing the Celtics of the perimeter threat they need to soften the Lakers’ defense.
Part of the problem is that Allen is assigned to guard Kobe Bryant, who tallied 30 points in Game 1. Rivers said after the game the Celtics may adjust that.
The Celtics were 1-of-10 from 3-point range. Allen got up two attempts, missing both.
“It was frustrating. For sure it was frustrating,” Allen said.
FERRY QUITS AS GM
Danny Ferry didn’t agree with the decision to fire Cleveland’s coach. He knew re-signing free agent LeBron James would be difficult, and he felt his authority as general manager was being reduced by an owner with a different vision.
So Ferry stepped down, resigning as Cleveland’s general manager after five seasons Friday, leaving the team seemingly in turmoil during the most important offseason in team history – the Summer of LeBron.
Ferry’s departure came two weeks after owner Dan Gilbert fired coach Mike Brown after the Cavs’ playoff elimination by Boston.
Ferry, whose contract was set to expire June 30, said he decided to leave after talks with Gilbert revealed they had differing ideas on the Cavaliers’ direction.
