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This article can go in so many different directions after last night’s semi-shocking news. This can be a “Hate Ray Allen Love His Replacement” story, “Lets Over Exaggerate Terry’s Skills”, or “Lets Mourn Ray And Piss And Moan About How We’re Not Getting Any Younger”.

For me personally, the signing of Jason Terry sealed the deal on Ray Allen.  Right then I knew he wasn’t coming back. But this was still a great signing. He’s a veteran player who has no qualms coming off the bench, and knows his role. Reports have stated that Jesus Shuttlesworth was upset over the fact his starting role was taken by a certain defensive pest otherwise known as Avery Bradley. With Terry, you get a player who is willing to come off the bench to provide an instant offensive spark. And lets face it, our Celtics needed that kind of guy… I can’t even pick a guy off the bench who provided that type of scoring punch for us last season, who might have filled that role in 2012-13…oh wait, I can – that player was going to be Ray Allen…

This story isn’t to rub Ray’s nose in the the awesomeness that is JET.  It is simply to show what Boston is getting out of him for the next three years.  Let’s take a look…

Jason Eugene Terry:

• As of July 7th 2012 he is 34 years old
• Height: 6′ 2”
• Weight: 180 Pounds
• Years in the NBA: 13
• Position: Combo Guard (Point and Shooting)
• Awards: 2011 NBA Champion and 2009 NBA Sixth Man of the Year

I understand the concerns about age, and while the Celtics did get a great Sixth Man, I was surprised that Danny Ainge would choose to make the Celtics older when there is an obvious need to get younger.  That being said, Jason Terry is durable – very durable.  Over the course of his entire career, Terry has missed less than 15 games in total.  Think about that – 15 games missed IN HIS CAREER!  He has played in 1,022 total games since being drafted in 1999, and in 626 of those games he was either the starting point guard or starting shooting guard.

The JET averaged 15 points a game last season while playing 63 games of the lockout-shortened season. Ray Allen averaged around 14 points. No major difference, until you realize that Allen only played in 46 games during the 2011-12 NBA regular season.  Again, the durable Terry played in 63 games.

When Ray Allen came to Boston there was the impression that yes he was getting older and would possibly break down.  He had surgery on bum ankles, but Ainge realized that this would be our best shot at a championship.  It worked, of course, and Banner 17 was raised in 2008.  Through that championship season and over the course of the next for seasons, Ray Allen started for the Boston Celtics.  The move to Miami shows that he did not want to come off the bench in Boston, and that he may have aspirations of getting his starting role back at some point in South Beach.  If so, that is a key difference between Allen and Terry.  Terry is completely comfortable coming off the bench for the Celtics.

To take it a step further:  Terry is a professional who knows when it’s time to pass the torch to younger teammates.

“I just love that they have a championship pedigree,” Terry, who plays both guard spots coming off the bench, said of why he chose the Celtics. “And I think their point guard (Rajon Rondo) is the best in the business at controlling both ends of the floor. And they’ve got Hall of Famers.” (Via Fox Sports Florida)

JET will be this team’s glue guy off the bench, and in a way he’s also going to be the starter’s biggest cheerleader. But it goes deeper than that.  While watching him over the past few seasons, I’ve come to learn that Terry is a guy who can light a fire underneath a teammate.  Imagine KG’s aggression and determination, but in a 6′ 2” SG off the bench, and that, folks, is Jason Terry.

So I endorse Ainge’s signing of him 100%. I know Terry won’t be the long-term solution, but having him on the bench the next couple of seasons is going to be great. Imagine what he can teach E’Twaun Moore and the rest of the new players. Perhaps he can even help Avery Bradley take it to the next level – picture Bradley shooting from downtown and making it consistently!

Yes Ray Allen will be missed, but he now is coming off of another ankle surgery and won’t be fully recovered for awhile. This will have an effect on how he will play when he “takes his talents to South Beach” (I hate that saying that!). Ray Allen will always be that guy who can just come out of nowhere with a three, but he’s getting older and slowing down, and he wouldn’t be as good a fit as Terry in Boston anyway.

So while Allen’s jet lands in South Beach, the new JET lands in Boston!

Brad Krivelow is a student at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and is a new blogger at Celtic Nation.  Be sure to follow him on Twitter @BKrivelow