Again, starting with Boston, widely regarded as the weakest link in the "Big Three" on both ends of the court, Ray Allen has done nothing in these playoffs to make us think otherwise. That's not to say he's not still capable of All Star performances, he's just happened to be in the biggest shooting slump of his career in the most important time.
There was a day when "Sugar Ray" and "Jesus" were synonymous, as Ray Allen was the NBA's definition of smooth. His handle is elusive but never forced, his forays to the basket are as graceful as they come, and oh, god, that jumpshot, God never intended for man to shoot, that's why the only one that can is Jesus.
Those days seem behind us now as at times in these playoffs Ray hit so many bricks he could rebuild the old Boston Garden, but to think that he can't just go off on you would be a terrible mistake. As the Pistons learned in Game 5, Sugar Ray is still capable of stabbing you in the heart.
Allen's strengths are obviously his spot up shooting and shooting in transition, although his pull up jumper is also among the best in the league. Over the years Allen has learned to counter his impeccable shooting with pump fakes and drives to the basket, most forget that he came in as a high flyer and a Slam Dunk contestant (although he was terrible in the Dunk Contest). Allen is also among the league leaders in all time free throw shooting percentage, but is prone to clanging one (or both) in crunch time, Paul Pierce on the other hand is a terrific crunch time freethrow shooter, even all bounces go his way.
On the LA side, to keep things short, Kobe Bryant is the single greatest and most talented athlete on this planet with no discernible weaknesses, which includes the fact that he's also the best defensive player in the league. Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and James Posey better wear some ankle braces.
P.S. : Paul Pierce is not going off for 40 again....
Edge: Lakers
