“Ring-chasing” is an oft-derided modern phenomenon. It wasn’t mocked in 1985 when Bill Walton demanded a trade to either the champion Los Angeles Lakers or would-be champion Boston Celtics, but for some reason (deduce as you will) it was roundly criticized in 2003 when Gary Payton and Karl Malone took far, far less money than they were being offered elsewhere to sign with the Lakers; a team that actually hadn’t even won a ring the year before.

In the years since, just about every player who has joined a team along those lines has gotten the same treatment, even down to the sainted Shane Battier and Ray Allen as they joined the (in Battier’s case, non-champion) Miami Heat. Battier earned two rings with the Heat before retiring, while Allen earned his second ring as a pro in 2013. Allen currently is considering stepping down after a Hall of Fame-level career.

Or, he could follow LeBron James to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and hear the catcalls from those who have no idea what it’s like to be in a locker room when the champagne starts spraying. Allen discussed his impending decision in a discussion with Mark Murphy at the Boston Herald:

"No," he said when asked about the assumption that he would return as a Cavalier. "There’s so much speculation about me going to Cleveland. I haven’t even decided where I will play. Obviously LeBron and I are great friends, and James Jones and I are really close. But at no point have those two tried to push me in that direction. I haven’t had that conversation. LeBron and I went on vacation to the Bahamas earlier this summer, and we didn’t talk one iota about things. And that was before he made his decision.

"It’s just what they start talking about on TV — where I’m supposed to go. I have not leaned towards Cleveland," said Allen. "I have not made any mention of going to Cleveland. These last two months were about me physically, and deciding whether I want to play again."

Instead, Allen is weighing family concerns and a major question of whether he wants to retire in prime physical shape, or whether he wants to chase his third NBA title. That will most likely mean leaving Miami, his city of the last two years. Allen said he has not talked with Heat general manager Pat Riley, or any other member of the Heat organization, about returning.

"That’s the other dilemma. If I do play again, based on what Miami is doing or not doing, I’ll end up having to move," he said. "I’ll live in Miami, but I’ll have to move to another team."

Yes, “where the dude and his family actually live.” Something that gets lost way, WAY too often as we discuss these players as assets, and complain when they stay in their incumbent cities, declining to pull up roots and move. In Allen’s case it would be the fourth such move of his career, not counting the time he was traded just minutes after being drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

We know, we know – world’s tiniest violin. Allen’s potential “veteran’s minimum” contract with Miami or Cleveland (and probably not with Doc Rivers’ Los Angeles Clippers, who are just about hard-capped out) would make him yet another million, even if it will underpay for the sort of services he provides. Ray’s three-point shooting declined last season, but anyone who watched a Heat game and took in the “oh no oh no oh no oh no”-reaction that defenses gave Miami while collapsing on an open Allen will attest to what he brings to the table.

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