NBA Rumors: Ray Allen Could Sign With Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers

Ray Allen's time with the Boston Celtics could be at an end. The shooting guard, who has been a member of the Celtics since 2007, has reportedly been offered a deal to join the Miami Heat.

Although the Associated Press provided few details, it reported via WCVB.com in Boston that Allen seems to be taking a serious look at joining the NBA champion Miami Heat.

A person familiar with the situation told the Associated Press that the free-agent guard visited the Heat in Miami on Thursday, AP reported. Allen was planning to remain in South florida until Friday, according to the person who spoke on the condition of anonymity because no details of the meeting were publicly revealed.

LeBron James has tweeted in reference to the possibility and posted a manipulated picture of Allen wearing a Heat jersey with the message, This looks damn fine to me. On Wednesday, James' teammate and fellow Heat superstar, Dwayne Wade, tweeted 2morrow is a big day for #HeatNation. Any deal that's on the table can't officially be signed until the NBA contract freeze ends July 11.

Allen is certainly familiar with the Heat. The Celtics teams he's played for have faced Miami in each of the past three postseasons, beating James and Co. only in 2009-2010.The most recent series was a seven-game nail-biter that the Heat won en route to the championship.

Allen could fit nicely onto a team that already has proved it can win the championship without him, a prospect that would look increasingly appealing to the 36-year-old. He'll go down in the books as one of the best shooters ever, a trait the Heat would love to use to complement James, Wade, and Chris Bosh.

There is competition for the guard's service, though, as the Los Angeles Clippers have also been rumored to be a likely destination for Allen.

The Clippers have the pieces for a deep run, but it may all depend on whether Ray sees Los Angeles as a true title contender, writes Todd Pheifer of Yahoo! He is still one of the best shooters of all time and he keeps himself in great shape. However, he has struggled a bit with injuries so if the Clippers, they would need to make sure that they could keep him fresh.

Despite the injury trouble in recent years, Allen just bested his career number with a 45 percent rate from the three point line this past season. His shot and experience could make the already intimidating Heat look even scarier to opposing teams.