We've already heard that the price for the Celtics stars is young players and picks. Here's confirmation from Larry Legend himself (hat tip to SBNation Boston).
Big 3's final run stirs bittersweet memories for original trio - ESPN Boston
"Here's the thing," Bird said. "When Danny and I talked about trading for Ray, he wanted Tyler Hansbrough and a first-round pick. If that's the value he's putting on Ray Allen, he ain't getting it. That tells me he's in no hurry to trade him. "All that talk about Danny blowing it up, about not making the same mistakes as Red, is fine. "But now that it's his turn to pull the trigger, it's a helluva lot harder than it looks."
I love Ray Allen, but I'd do that deal in a heartbeat and I'm not surprised that Larry turned it down. (Update: I'm reminded by some that Hansbrough is having a bad year - shows how little I scout other teams - so turn that "in a heartbeat" into a "I'd consider it after talking to my mythical scouting team")
Danny probably won't get what he's asking for right now. The real question is will he hold to his price (and wait for the summer) or will he cave and give up his stars for less than their value? I vote for the former.
As for Ray, aside from his 4th quarter barrage in Houston, he's been a bit cold lately. Not that anyone's actually concerned about that.
Ray Allen won’t excuse rare 0-fer - BostonHerald.com
The point, according to Rivers, is that there always comes a time when defenders start sticking to Allen a little more incessantly. “He is struggling right now, but a lot of teams are guarding him tight,” Rivers said after the loss Wednesday to the Sixers. “We go through this every year — a stretch of teams that guard him really well. But he just has to stay relaxed and let the game come to him. Everybody early on (Wednesday night) was forcing it — too much dribble. If the ball is bouncing a lot then we’re not playing well.”
I have no concerns that Ray will regain his stroke sooner rather than later.
Ray also seems to take all this trade talk in stride.
Ray Allen Considers it a Compliment When His Name is Mentioned in Trade Talks
For however amount of time I’ve been in the league anytime anybody talks about a trade, one thing about a trade is that most people look at it as a negative but the one thing that I take solace in when it comes to trade rumors is that there are other people out there who appreciate who you are, like you, and want you on their team. I’ve heard a couple of other people talking about other teams would love to have me playing on their team and that’s always a great compliment. I just need to continue to make sure that the team that I play for continues to want me on their team, playing for them, just the same.”