Editing Ray Allen (section)

==Early life==
The third of five children, Allen was born at [[Castle Air Force Base]] near [[Merced, California]], the son of Walter Sr. and Flora Allen.<ref name=jock>{{cite web |url=http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Allen/Allen_bio.html |title=Ray Allen Biography |publisher=JockBio |access-date=March 29, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316035944/http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Allen/Allen_bio.html |archive-date=March 16, 2012}}</ref> A [[Military brat (U.S. subculture)|military child]], he spent time growing up in [[Saxmundham]], [[Suffolk]], [[England]], in [[Altus, Oklahoma]], at [[Edwards Air Force Base]]<ref name=jock /> in California, and in Germany.<ref name=rayroots>Marc J. Spears, [http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2007/10/10/allen_takes_a_strange_route_to_his_roots/ Allen takes a strange route to his roots] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012114744/http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2007/10/10/allen_takes_a_strange_route_to_his_roots |date=October 12, 2008 }}, ''[[The Boston Globe]]'', October 10, 2007.</ref> After years of traveling and frequent moves, his family settled in [[Dalzell, South Carolina]], for four years, where he would attend high school. When he first arrived, the young Allen was often the odd-man-out, picked on by other kids for the accent acquired during his formative years in Britain. Allen's athletic gifts and work ethic allowed him to excel in sports. When a growth spurt left him with a natural advantage in basketball, he decided to dedicate his free time to becoming the best basketball player he possibly could.<ref name="theplayerstribune.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.theplayerstribune.com/ray-allen-letter-to-my-younger-self/|title=Letter to My Younger Self – By Ray Allen|website=The Players' Tribune|date=November 2016 }}</ref>

Fueled by his desire to become the top player on his military base, Allen practiced at length daily, so long as it did not interfere with his studies.<ref name="theplayerstribune.com"/> By the age of fifteen, he was playing for [[Hillcrest High School (Dalzell, South Carolina)|Hillcrest High School]]'s varsity team, and would eventually lead them to their first state championship. Allen scored 25 points and notched 12 rebounds in a blowout victory for Hillcrest Wildcats.<ref name="recruit" /> At Hillcrest, he was teammates with future [[Major League Baseball]] player [[Terrell Wade]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Scoppe |first1=Rick |last2=Luke |first2=Tim |title=Rembert's Favorite Son |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/105868522/remberts-favorite-son/ |access-date=18 July 2022 |work=[[The Greenville News]] |date=27 April 1997 }}</ref> He drew much attention from college recruiters, especially from the [[University of Kentucky]], but ultimately accepted an offer from the [[University of Connecticut]].<ref name="recruit">{{cite web|url=http://kentuckysportsradio.com/basketball-2/ray-allen-explains-why-he-picked-uconn-over-uk-in-93/|title=Ray Allen explains why he picked UConn over UK in '92 – Kentucky Sports Radio|website=kentuckysportsradio.com|access-date=July 25, 2017|archive-date=August 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807152117/http://kentuckysportsradio.com/basketball-2/ray-allen-explains-why-he-picked-uconn-over-uk-in-93/|url-status=live}}</ref>