NBA 2013-2014

[Jeff Lebowski]

Calling Andre Miller a role player is completely ridiculous at least until the last couple of years. He was a just beneath All-Star caliber player for about 10-12 of the years of his career. If he was a role player everyone but the All_Stars are role players. He has had a tremendous career and is incredibly consistent.

He may never have been an all-star, but if they gave awards for brains, he would be league MVP every year!

So I hear anyway.

[MartyFunkhouser]

For someone who is so smart, why didn't Miller ever learn how to shoot?

I didn't realize that shooting a basketball was based on intelligence. As for examples of Dre's intelligence on the Court. How about the 2 times that he was able to lure 2 entire teams into believing that he was about to call a timeout to get an easy bucket.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xPESNueqpU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMDunIUhT1k

How about Zach Lowe's assessment of Andre Miller's basketball IQ.

Miller is the reason every NBA fan needs to invest in DVR — and not even because of the lob passes, long the best in the business, and propping up JaVale McGee’s career for the last year. It is astonishing what Professor Miller can see in real time, with nine other guys darting around a crowded court.

He is always two steps ahead of opponents and teammates, in ways that are easy to miss on first watch. But when you slow down the tape, you can see Miller doing this kind of calculation: “If I pause mid-dribble, hesitate, and then take one extra dribble into the paint, Defender A will shift to Spot X, which allows Teammate B to get open in Spot Y, which in turn will draw Defender B, which in turn will free Teammate C who likely has no idea what is about to happen.” It is like a perfect geometric proof during an NBA game.

Toss in one of the best little guy, ass-first post games, and I’m sold. Miller can’t really defend anymore, and Denver has to hide him on the weakest offensive player at all times, but this list is about pure entertainment.

http://grantland.com/features/kyrie-...all-star-game/

Another breakdown of Andre Miller's passing and court vision.
http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/10/...denver-nuggets

Watching this in action here are 70 of the 79 lob passes from 2012-2013 by Miller.

Andre Miller is what happens when a player fully buys into Rick Majerus' teaching. He is the ultimate Rick Majerus basketball player. He was never an all-star, but there were years he certainly deserved to be an allstar.

[Jeff Lebowski]

He was never an all-star, but there were years he certainly deserved to be an allstar.

What do you think it was? Jealousy from all the people who realized they aren't as smart as him?

[MartyFunkhouser]

What do you think it was? Jealousy from all the people who realized they aren't as smart as him?

He played in an era with lots of good PGs and his game isn't flashy. One thing that baseball has taught me, never use all star games as a means of assessing a player's career.

Miller is one of 8 players to score 15,000 points and dish out 7,500 assists. The other 7 players: John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Oscar Robertson, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, and Gary Payton. Every single one of those players is a hall of famer. I'm not arguing that Miller belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he is more than a role player.

[smokymountainrain]

He played in an era with lots of good PGs and his game isn't flashy. One thing that baseball has taught me, never use all star games as a means of assessing a player's career.

Miller is one of 8 players to score 15,000 points and dish out 7,500 assists. The other 7 players: John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Oscar Robertson, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, and Gary Payton. Every single one of those players is a hall of famer. I'm not arguing that Miller belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he is more than a role player.

Translation: Andre Miller is a role player who has played for a really long time.

[wapiti]

He played in an era with lots of good PGs and his game isn't flashy. One thing that baseball has taught me, never use all star games as a means of assessing a player's career.

Miller is one of 8 players to score 15,000 points and dish out 7,500 assists. The other 7 players: John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Oscar Robertson, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, and Gary Payton. Every single one of those players is a hall of famer. I'm not arguing that Miller belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he is more than a role player.

[Moliere]

He played in an era with lots of good PGs and his game isn't flashy. One thing that baseball has taught me, never use all star games as a means of assessing a player's career.

Miller is one of 8 players to score 15,000 points and dish out 7,500 assists. The other 7 players: John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Oscar Robertson, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, and Gary Payton. Every single one of those players is a hall of famer. I'm not arguing that Miller belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he is more than a role player.

I'm glad you aren't making that argument since it would be difficult to get voted into the HoF when you have never made an all-star team and you have never made it out of the first round of the playoffs.

It seems to me that Ute fan's perception of Andre Miller is skewed by one really deep run in the tourney. You take away that tourney run and you have a great collegiate player that has had a pretty mediocre, but long, NBA career.

[Jeff Lebowski]

It seems to me that Ute fan's perception of Andre Miller is skewed by one really deep run in the tourney. You take away that tourney run and you have a great collegiate player that has had a pretty mediocre, but long, NBA career.

Even if you don't take away that tourney run you still have a great college player with a mediocre, but long NBA career.

[TripletDaddy]

im still trying to wrap my ahead around the notion that no current player in the game today knows as much about basketball as Andre Miller.

Not this guy:


Not this guy:


But THIS guy:

[wapiti]

I didn't realize that shooting a basketball was based on intelligence. As for examples of Dre's intelligence on the Court. How about the 2 times that he was able to lure 2 entire teams into believing that he was about to call a timeout to get an easy bucket.

Maybe his court vision is so good because his defender is always 3 steps off daring him to take the shot? Miller is an NBA equivalent to Matt Montague. I just checked his 3 pt stats and they are amazing for a guard who has played so much basketball. In 07-08 he played 82 games and hit just 3 of 34 three pt shots. He's a career 22% 3pt shooter and has never improved that part of his game.

[smokymountainrain]

Maybe his court vision is so good because his defender is always 3 steps off daring him to take the shot? Miller is an NBA equivalent to Matt Montague. I just checked his 3 pt stats and they are amazing for a guard who has played so much basketball. In 07-08 he played 82 games and hit just 3 of 34 three pt shots. He's a career 22% 3pt shooter and has never improved that part of his game.

[Flystripper]

I like Andre Miller. I would have loved him to be a cog on the Lakers when he was younger because he knows how to fit into whatever system he plays in and he makes people better.

[Moliere]

Even if you don't take away that tourney run you still have a great college player with a mediocre, but long NBA career.

Just to clarify, I meant if you take that away from the Ute fan perception of Milller. To them the guy walks on water. It's kind of like with BYU fans Jimmer. I see all the #freejimmer messages and I laugh with the thought that some BYU fan in Orem, UT thinks that the Kings were consciously trying to hold Jimmer back from being a star.

[imanihonjin]

His NBA career has been very good and he has consistently been underrated. He is also the smartest player in the NBA. No one in the NBA right now knows the game better than Miller.

What a weird thing to say....and then to back up you claim that he is the smartest man in basketball you post two clips where he fooled a team into making them think he was going to call a time out, but instead gets an easy layup? While clever, that is really an odd thing to post as evidence that he is the smartest man in basketball.

[MartyFunkhouser]

I'm glad you aren't making that argument since it would be difficult to get voted into the HoF when you have never made an all-star team and you have never made it out of the first round of the playoffs.

It seems to me that Ute fan's perception of Andre Miller is skewed by one really deep run in the tourney. You take away that tourney run and you have a great collegiate player that has had a pretty mediocre, but long, NBA career.

Freshman year: Sweet 16
Sophomore year: Elite 8
Junior year: Championship game. This also included a dominant performance in the elite 8 against the defending national champion
Senior year: Loss in the 2nd round. Dre got injured and Utah ran into a buzz saw in the 2nd round. Miami (Ohio) had a coach that decided he wanted to emulate the Ute program and had his team watching tape of Utah for years. It was the only time in Majerus career where the other team scouted better than him.