Reggie Miller officially put to bed any possible comeback attempt Aug. 23. The 42-year-old said he could have done it physically, but the grind of an 82-game season wasn't worth another chance at getting the elusive NBA Championship that eluded him for 18 seasons.
Drafted with the eleventh pick in the 1987 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers, the California and UCLA kid became an Indiana icon as an adult. Known for his ability to launch 3-pointers even when horribly off-balance. Miller has made perhaps the biggest mistake of his career by turning down the opportunity to play along Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce in Boston.
Boston General Manager Danny Ainge only asked for 15 minutes or so a game from the NBA's career 3-point baskets made record holder.
Miller would face no pressure to carry a team, something he had to do by himself for way too long with the Pacers. All he had to do was come off the bench and chuck 3-pointers a couple times a game.
As an intern with the Pacers this past summer I know the idea of having the Pacers golden child run off to Boston on a last ditch effort to get the final piece to his masterpiece of a career was a very unpopular idea.
Why? It's because people are selfish and want to hold onto the idea of Miller only playing with the Pacers. It's great if a player is able to compete with only one team, but if that player gets an opportunity that no other team can give him then he must seize it before it passes.
It's a once in a lifetime opportunity. He will never get a shot at winning the championship again. Pacers fans who followed Miller, who believed in Miller time, who yelled BOOM BABY! every time he hit a three should support a comeback attempt. You should want what is best for Miller and not what is best for the misguided pedestal you have him placed on.
This is not a Karl Malone situation. Malone went to the Lakers, and high expectations were placed upon him. He was expected to be an above-average starting power forward. As history showed, he wasn't. He was a shell of his former self.
This isn't even a Michael Jordan situation. Jordan came back because he was sick of being in the front office, because he was embarrassed at his management skills. He knew the only way he could possibly make Kwame Brown and the rest of those Washington Wizards a good team was to don the jersey one more time.
Miller knew he wasn't in the same situation as Jordan.
"Michael Jordan was bored when he came back," Miller said in a ESPN.com story. "I didn't miss the games, I didn't miss the locker room, I didn't miss the bus, I didn't miss the planes. I wanted to come back to play with Kevin [Garnett] and possibly win a championship."
Miller will some day wake up and think to himself "I blew it. I had one more shot and I passed." He's already starting to regret it.
"I'm wrestling with my decision now because I know I could've done it," Miller said in the ESPN.com story.
J.A. Adande, the author of the ESPN.com story, wrote that he bets Miller won't regret his decision come March when he is preparing for the final stretch of his nineteenth grueling NBA season. That might be true, but he will regret it somewhere down the road - just ask Charles Barkley.
Write to Levin at levintblack@gmail.com
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