“Rebound Bosh… back out to Allen… his 3-pointer… BAAAAAAAAAAANG!”
11 years ago today, Ray Allen’s three pointer in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals instantly became one of the greatest and most memorable shots in NBA history.
The Finals were basically lost, but the three tied the game and sent it to overtime, allowing the Miami Heat to come back and eventually win the championship.
In an interview, Allen talked to Shams Charania of The Athletic about the feelings he had prior to releasing the shot. The Larry O’Brien trophy being carted to the court without the game being over, reminded him of losing the Finals in 2001 and made him angry.
“It hurt,” Ray Allen said. “It hurt so bad. I was angry. I was so pissed because the game wasn’t over with yet. I just remember 2001 when we lost to Philadelphia, the ropes came out and they celebrated the Eastern Conference championships early. That was going through my mind watching the yellow ropes come out, and seeing the trophy”
“I was so pissed because the game wasn’t over with yet. That’s what happened in 2013, too, when they were assuming that the Spurs were going to win. It was that same feeling that I had in 2001. It was anger. That’s why you just don’t give up and fight until the end.”
“I remember us never giving up, never letting our own arena feel we gave up.”
