Not since the almost three hour bore-fest that was There Will Be Blood was voted as best picture have I been this angry about a human vote. Reggie Miller not a Hall of Fame finalist? This must be a joke right? Chris Mullen, Dennis Rodman and others are finalists and Reggie freaking Miller is not?!?! How can that be? I may be possibly the most bias person on this issue without the last name “Miller”, beings as Reggie is my all-time favorite athlete, but this is a travesty. That’s right, I used the word “travesty”. (On a side-note, my Grandma’s maiden name was coincidently “Miller”. Caused many fights with me and my parents on why she couldn’t keep that name and they could have named me Reggie. True story.)
The arguments against Reggie are the same ones we have heard for years. All he could do is shoot. He has the 3-point record only because he attempted more than anybody in NBA history. He only started an all-star game one time. His highest scoring average was 24.6. He never won a ring. People love to nit-pick Reggie. By digging deeper into these shallow arguments, you will find they hold no water.
He sure could shoot, but it wasn’t the only thing he could do. Reggie was not as bad of defender as he was made out to be. This was actually talked about a lot towards the end of his career. Both coaches and players said how he had improved his on-ball defense from what he started at. Even if his defense was sub-par, and I’m not saying it was great but it wasn’t awful, how many long range shooters and primary scorers work as hard as Reggie did, into their 30’s none the less, to improve their defense? Not many that I can think of. The comparison for defensive acumen that I can think of is Ray Allen. Allen was a terrible defender in Milwaukee and Seattle. He has become better in Boston for two reasons, 1) he is trying harder on defense instead of focusing on his offensive game so much, and 2) when he does get beat, he has KG, Perkins, Shaq and other big bodies to help on the drive. Not to mention, Rondo is a premier defensive player, allowing Ray to guard the weaker of the two guards. Reggie improved his defense almost every year by diligent work in the off season.
Could he rebound, pass or dribble? Sure he could. Per game, he only averaged three boards, three assists, and 1.1 steals per game, but, does anybody who actually watched Pacers games, instead of just looking at stats, remember how towards the ends of the game Reggie would seemingly ALWAYS come up with a defensive rebound, allowing him to be the one with the ball so he could take his often over 90% free throw shooting down to the other end to ice the game? Reggie found a way to get the rebound or make the pass his team needed late in the game, and he did it time and time again. As far as ball-handling, he did come off of screens a lot looking for a pass and shot, but he also created his own shot more often than most remember. One of my most memorable Reggie moments was in the 2002 Playoffs against the Nets when, late in the game, Reggie caught the ball at the top of the key and instead of taking the three that everybody expected, he drove the land and threw down a hard two-handed slam to take the air out of the Nets and get the entire Pacers bench on their feet. It was a one of many magical Reggie moments that are forgotten so easily because of his other heroics.
The 3-point record, the one he lost last week to Ray Allen, is a better accomplishment that it may seem. Many people in the press the last week or so who have been praising Ray Allen have seemed to be missing the fact that Reggie didn’t shoot that many more than Ray. I have heard how Allen now has the 3-pointers made record, and hasn’t attempted as many as Reggie. The differential of their career 3-point average is a whopping .003. Yes that is correct. Ray Allen is a career .398 3-point shooter. Reggie Miller is a career .395 3-point shooter. I am by no means taking anything away from Ray Allen. He deserves the record, he has worked hard and he has been a fantastic shooter throughout his career, but he difference between he and Reggie is next to nothing. The main difference I see is that Reggie Miller never played on a team where he was a second option. I suppose he could have been considered a second option in his final few years when Jermaine O’Neal became the star for the Pacers, but defensives knew who they were not going to let beat them. Ray Allen has the advantage of playing his fourth year with Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Pierce, like him or hate him, is probably more likely to take a game winner than Allen. Reggie was always the focal point of the opposing team’s defense, and as far as I am concerned, will always be the 3-point king.
It is true that Reggie Miller only started in one measly All Star game. He must have had some bad years to not even be considered a starter. Wonder who started over him in that era? Oh, right, it was MICHAEL JORDAN! As I said at the outset, I have a bias when writing about Reggie, but I am also realistic. I know Michael Jordan was a better basketball player than Reggie Miller. The fact that Reggie Miller only started one all-star game is a complete non-issue on how his career should be remembered. He was stuck behind the greatest basketball player of all time, playing the same position in the same conference for almost his whole career. That one is just bad timing for Reggie.
His highest season scoring average was only 24.6 ppg. This would be the most valid argument against Reggie being voted into the Hall Of Fame, if it was called the Hall of Scoring. First of all, remember that for a career, Reggie Miller scored 18.2 ppg against the best players in the world guarding him. He also only committed 1.7 turnovers per game and 2.0 personal fouls per game. One thing he didn’t do was hurt his team when not scoring the ball. I never remember a game when Reggie was not scoring well, that he wasn’t helping the team win the game. His biggest flaw was bad shooting nights. That happens to everybody. Reggie was calm enough to not hurt his team in other ways, and still be able to shoot at the end of games. Whether he scored 30 a game or 18 a game, the opposing team would much rather see almost anybody in the world taking that last shot.
Now for my favorite argument: he never won a ring. This is a true statement. It kills me every time I hear it, but it is true. There are so many sub-plots to this point that I could talk for days about it. Since they switched from the ABA to the NBA, the Pacers were a terrible franchise. Reggie took this team, put it on his shoulders and made it a perennial Eastern Conference contender. He took the Pacers to six Eastern Conference Championships and one NBA Finals. Yet, he won no ring. I would like to present what I think is the most overlooked sub-plot in bad refereeing history: The storied Lakers-Blazers Western Conference Finals Game 7 of 2000. The Blazers had a huge 4th quarter lead, and due to bad refs and bad play by the Blazers, the Lakers made a monumental comeback and won the series and went on to beat the Pacers in six games in the finals. The victim of this fateful game is always thought of as the Blazers. It was not the Blazers, however, it was the Pacers! If the Blazers had held on, they would have met the Pacers in the Finals. Do you know how the Pacers did against Portland that season? They won both games. Won in Indiana and in Portland. The Blazers were a far better matchup for the Pacers, because they didn’t have a young Kobe or a Shaq at the top of his game. I know anything can happen, but the Pacers would have won that series. Yes, I am telling you right now, 10 years later, if the Blazers hadn’t choked, Reggie Miller would have a ring.
The other two “what if’s” concerning the ring question are: what if Michael Jordan hadn’t returned from his first retirement? The Pacers would likely have had at least one ring during the Bulls’ second 3-peat. And finally, what if Reggie had returned from retirement to play for a contender? He easily could have returned for the 2007 version of the Lakers, Mavs or Celtics. The Celtics were supposedly in serious talks with Reggie. When all was said and done, Reggie couldn’t pull the trigger. Why? Because he simply couldn’t see himself wearing any other jersey than the one saying “Indiana” on the front.
Reggie Miller is considered by many as the best shooter to ever play in the NBA. Many of his last game heroics are forgotten because his greatest late game heroics are so great. ESPN made a documentary about his dominance over one team in the playoffs. Many people look at the rivalry he is best known for, with the Knicks, and think he was always some kind of punk who acted out all the time. Reggie played with a chip on his shoulder, but there is a reason other NBA players who played with Reggie had the upmost respect for him. That reason is that Reggie Miller is one of the most stand-up guys to ever lace them up. Just tonight, when Ray Allen was competing in the 3-point contest and Charles Barkley was heaping praise on who he called the “best shooter of all time”, and saying how he can’t remember any big shots Ray Allen had hit, but remembered numerous big Reggie shots, Reggie broke in and changed the subject back to Ray’s performance in the contest. The only time Reggie wanted the attention on him was when he was on the court.
Reggie retired and stayed retired. He never wanted any special attention paid to him post-retirement. He didn’t return to play a role on a title contender. He had already been a “role player” of sorts when he attempted to groom Jermaine O’Neal to become the face of the Pacers. In his last couple years, Reggie attempted to put the focus on the young guys for the Pacers and mentored them like few NBA veterans would have done. He did it for the good of the Pacers organization, which he had so loyally played for his entire career. In a year where the sports media and fans alike have absolutely chastised LeBron James for showing no loyalty to Cleveland, the Hall of Fame voters have spit in the face of loyalty. Reggie Miller is as loyal of NBA superstar as there has ever been, and by not selling his identity to play for a title contending team he was denied a ring, and denied his rightful spot in the Hall of Fame.
The arguments against Reggie are the same ones we have heard for years. All he could do is shoot. He has the 3-point record only because he attempted more than anybody in NBA history. He only started an all-star game one time. His highest scoring average was 24.6. He never won a ring. People love to nit-pick Reggie. By digging deeper into these shallow arguments, you will find they hold no water.
He sure could shoot, but it wasn’t the only thing he could do. Reggie was not as bad of defender as he was made out to be. This was actually talked about a lot towards the end of his career. Both coaches and players said how he had improved his on-ball defense from what he started at. Even if his defense was sub-par, and I’m not saying it was great but it wasn’t awful, how many long range shooters and primary scorers work as hard as Reggie did, into their 30’s none the less, to improve their defense? Not many that I can think of. The comparison for defensive acumen that I can think of is Ray Allen. Allen was a terrible defender in Milwaukee and Seattle. He has become better in Boston for two reasons, 1) he is trying harder on defense instead of focusing on his offensive game so much, and 2) when he does get beat, he has KG, Perkins, Shaq and other big bodies to help on the drive. Not to mention, Rondo is a premier defensive player, allowing Ray to guard the weaker of the two guards. Reggie improved his defense almost every year by diligent work in the off season.
Could he rebound, pass or dribble? Sure he could. Per game, he only averaged three boards, three assists, and 1.1 steals per game, but, does anybody who actually watched Pacers games, instead of just looking at stats, remember how towards the ends of the game Reggie would seemingly ALWAYS come up with a defensive rebound, allowing him to be the one with the ball so he could take his often over 90% free throw shooting down to the other end to ice the game? Reggie found a way to get the rebound or make the pass his team needed late in the game, and he did it time and time again. As far as ball-handling, he did come off of screens a lot looking for a pass and shot, but he also created his own shot more often than most remember. One of my most memorable Reggie moments was in the 2002 Playoffs against the Nets when, late in the game, Reggie caught the ball at the top of the key and instead of taking the three that everybody expected, he drove the land and threw down a hard two-handed slam to take the air out of the Nets and get the entire Pacers bench on their feet. It was a one of many magical Reggie moments that are forgotten so easily because of his other heroics.
The 3-point record, the one he lost last week to Ray Allen, is a better accomplishment that it may seem. Many people in the press the last week or so who have been praising Ray Allen have seemed to be missing the fact that Reggie didn’t shoot that many more than Ray. I have heard how Allen now has the 3-pointers made record, and hasn’t attempted as many as Reggie. The differential of their career 3-point average is a whopping .003. Yes that is correct. Ray Allen is a career .398 3-point shooter. Reggie Miller is a career .395 3-point shooter. I am by no means taking anything away from Ray Allen. He deserves the record, he has worked hard and he has been a fantastic shooter throughout his career, but he difference between he and Reggie is next to nothing. The main difference I see is that Reggie Miller never played on a team where he was a second option. I suppose he could have been considered a second option in his final few years when Jermaine O’Neal became the star for the Pacers, but defensives knew who they were not going to let beat them. Ray Allen has the advantage of playing his fourth year with Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Pierce, like him or hate him, is probably more likely to take a game winner than Allen. Reggie was always the focal point of the opposing team’s defense, and as far as I am concerned, will always be the 3-point king.
It is true that Reggie Miller only started in one measly All Star game. He must have had some bad years to not even be considered a starter. Wonder who started over him in that era? Oh, right, it was MICHAEL JORDAN! As I said at the outset, I have a bias when writing about Reggie, but I am also realistic. I know Michael Jordan was a better basketball player than Reggie Miller. The fact that Reggie Miller only started one all-star game is a complete non-issue on how his career should be remembered. He was stuck behind the greatest basketball player of all time, playing the same position in the same conference for almost his whole career. That one is just bad timing for Reggie.
His highest season scoring average was only 24.6 ppg. This would be the most valid argument against Reggie being voted into the Hall Of Fame, if it was called the Hall of Scoring. First of all, remember that for a career, Reggie Miller scored 18.2 ppg against the best players in the world guarding him. He also only committed 1.7 turnovers per game and 2.0 personal fouls per game. One thing he didn’t do was hurt his team when not scoring the ball. I never remember a game when Reggie was not scoring well, that he wasn’t helping the team win the game. His biggest flaw was bad shooting nights. That happens to everybody. Reggie was calm enough to not hurt his team in other ways, and still be able to shoot at the end of games. Whether he scored 30 a game or 18 a game, the opposing team would much rather see almost anybody in the world taking that last shot.
Now for my favorite argument: he never won a ring. This is a true statement. It kills me every time I hear it, but it is true. There are so many sub-plots to this point that I could talk for days about it. Since they switched from the ABA to the NBA, the Pacers were a terrible franchise. Reggie took this team, put it on his shoulders and made it a perennial Eastern Conference contender. He took the Pacers to six Eastern Conference Championships and one NBA Finals. Yet, he won no ring. I would like to present what I think is the most overlooked sub-plot in bad refereeing history: The storied Lakers-Blazers Western Conference Finals Game 7 of 2000. The Blazers had a huge 4th quarter lead, and due to bad refs and bad play by the Blazers, the Lakers made a monumental comeback and won the series and went on to beat the Pacers in six games in the finals. The victim of this fateful game is always thought of as the Blazers. It was not the Blazers, however, it was the Pacers! If the Blazers had held on, they would have met the Pacers in the Finals. Do you know how the Pacers did against Portland that season? They won both games. Won in Indiana and in Portland. The Blazers were a far better matchup for the Pacers, because they didn’t have a young Kobe or a Shaq at the top of his game. I know anything can happen, but the Pacers would have won that series. Yes, I am telling you right now, 10 years later, if the Blazers hadn’t choked, Reggie Miller would have a ring.
The other two “what if’s” concerning the ring question are: what if Michael Jordan hadn’t returned from his first retirement? The Pacers would likely have had at least one ring during the Bulls’ second 3-peat. And finally, what if Reggie had returned from retirement to play for a contender? He easily could have returned for the 2007 version of the Lakers, Mavs or Celtics. The Celtics were supposedly in serious talks with Reggie. When all was said and done, Reggie couldn’t pull the trigger. Why? Because he simply couldn’t see himself wearing any other jersey than the one saying “Indiana” on the front.
Reggie Miller is considered by many as the best shooter to ever play in the NBA. Many of his last game heroics are forgotten because his greatest late game heroics are so great. ESPN made a documentary about his dominance over one team in the playoffs. Many people look at the rivalry he is best known for, with the Knicks, and think he was always some kind of punk who acted out all the time. Reggie played with a chip on his shoulder, but there is a reason other NBA players who played with Reggie had the upmost respect for him. That reason is that Reggie Miller is one of the most stand-up guys to ever lace them up. Just tonight, when Ray Allen was competing in the 3-point contest and Charles Barkley was heaping praise on who he called the “best shooter of all time”, and saying how he can’t remember any big shots Ray Allen had hit, but remembered numerous big Reggie shots, Reggie broke in and changed the subject back to Ray’s performance in the contest. The only time Reggie wanted the attention on him was when he was on the court.
Reggie retired and stayed retired. He never wanted any special attention paid to him post-retirement. He didn’t return to play a role on a title contender. He had already been a “role player” of sorts when he attempted to groom Jermaine O’Neal to become the face of the Pacers. In his last couple years, Reggie attempted to put the focus on the young guys for the Pacers and mentored them like few NBA veterans would have done. He did it for the good of the Pacers organization, which he had so loyally played for his entire career. In a year where the sports media and fans alike have absolutely chastised LeBron James for showing no loyalty to Cleveland, the Hall of Fame voters have spit in the face of loyalty. Reggie Miller is as loyal of NBA superstar as there has ever been, and by not selling his identity to play for a title contending team he was denied a ring, and denied his rightful spot in the Hall of Fame.
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