This is my first article for my blog but it's one that comes from the heart. I'll admit I didn't do as much reseach as I should have but I don't feel like it was completely nessesary. It all started 20 years ago when I moved from Florida to Indiana. I was 2 back then but I swear that's when my love for sports all began. Getting older I began to watch sports more and more. Albeit I'm a Warriors fan by heart I grew up in a house full of Indiana Pacer fans. Over the years I did take a liking to watching one of the greatest players of my time not named MJ. Of course I'm speaking of Reggie "DOWNTOWN" Miller. I remember watching countless games on t.v. and hearing the roars of BOOMBABY screaming from the screen. I remember where I was at when, "The Brawl" that brought the Pacers down, happened. Buzzer beater after buzzer beater drained from anywhere and everywhere on the court. The countless moments Reggie singled handedly destroyed Knick fans. All stats aside he was a hero and role model to me and the hundred of thousands of other Pacer followers.
Reggie Miller, born Reginald Wayne Miller on August 24th, 1965, attented Riverside Polytech in Riverside, California. The 6'7, 185lbs forward/guard was drafted 11th overall in the 1987 NBA draft, from the UCLA Bruins to the Indiana Pacers. He played his whole 18 year career with the Pacers. He is third all-time is games played with one team, only behind Karl Malone and John Stockton formally of the Utah Jazz.
Now on to all those stats, for all you statistic-holics. Let me start off by listing some of his career averages...
34.3 MPG
18.2 PPG
3.0 RBG
1.1 SPG
3.0 APG
1.7 TPG
0.2 BPG
I understand clearly that these are not stats like that of MJ, Rick Berry, Larry Bird ect... In my eyes he wasn't known for his high scoring ability but his leadership, his hustle, and his clutch consistancy. In my opinion he has to be considered in the top 3 of players you would call upon in the last minute of any game. Mike most likely would agree with that statement. That's if he wants to remember back to May 25, 1998 when, with less then 3 seconds, Reg broke away from him and sank a game winning 3 in a 96-94 in Game 4 at MSA.
Next we MUST get into Reggie Miller "The Knick Killer." I'm sure 100% of Knicks fans remember the date May 7th, 1995. Close your eyes for a moment. Now picture this change of events.... 18.7 seconds left in Game 1 of the Conference Semifinals. Reggie makes a first 3 pointer, then all of a sudden he steals the inbound pass from Greg Anthony and runs back and "swoosh" drains another 3 pointer. After a Pacer foul, Miller rebounds the second attempt and gets fouled. There you you have it Knicks fans, 8 points in a matter of 8.9 seconds. In less then 9 seconds Miller becomes one of the most hated Sports Figures in New York History. The constant battles back and forth between him and one Spike Lee. No need to continue pouring on the hatred New York has for Reggie Miller.
Reggie Miller holds the Indiana Pacers single game scoring record with 57 points on November 28th, 1992. He is also one of only 5 players who has their jersey retired the Pacers. He is joined on that list by Roger Brown, Mel Daniels, Bobby "Slick" Leonard and George McGinnis. In 2007 he was recognized on Indiana's 40th anniversary team. His loan NBA Finals appearance came in 2000 vs the Lakers and the duo of Kobe and Shaq. Although the Pacers were defeated 4-2, Miller averaged 24.3 ppg during the series. Reggie's career in the playoff was just as good. In 144 career playoff games he averaged 20.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg and 2.5 apg. He shot 44% from insside the arc and 39% from beyond. His playoff average at the charity stripe is as good as told, with an astounding 89% at the line.
His career totals has him ranked high on all-time list in multiple categories. His career total in points, 25,279, is 12th best in NBA history. He ranks 6th in minutes played with 47,619 and 7th with 1389 games played. Highly recognized as one of the best free throw shooters ever, his 88% ranks 7th all-time. One thing we all know is about Reggie Miller is that he was one heck of a shooter from beyond the arc. Although many people make arguements for Ray Allen, Reggie's 2,560 is the all-time record for career 3 point fields in a career. His career achievements also include 5 appearances in the all-star game('90, '95, '96, '98, '00). He was also recognized on the All-NBA third team three times('94-95, '95-96, '97-98).
Although his stats might not be untouchable, it would be a crying shame for Reggie Miller not to be a first ballot Hall of Famer. I'm not the biggest Pacers fan of all-time, but I do know a great player when I see one. If I had a vote my vote would be for Reggie. I really hope that the voters see the same great player I grew up watching for years. Not having won an NBA Championship might be one of his downfalls. He also earned my respect by playing his whole career out with one team, which not many players can say they have done. That's another thing that upsets me with alot of great players. They play a long career with one team and once a ring doesn't come their way they jump ship. I created a facebook page, Reggie Miller for Hall of Fame, in support of his journey to the Hall of Fame. So as I close out my first article I ask for all the Hall of Fame voters to consider into mind the lustrious career and countless great memories Reggie Miller has left Indiana Pacer and NBA fans alike with. -Bernard Stasen
References- Stats & Information
www.wikipedia.com Search "Reggie Miller"
www.basketball-reference.com
Images-
www.google.com Google Images
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