"Now kids, enough about my being the greatest 3-point shooter ever; let me tell you about the year I rode the pine to win an NBA championship."
>> Wednesday
Reggie Miller is contemplating a comeback with Boston. Why would a guy like Miller bother? Like most sports fans, I'm guessing he doesn't want to be remembered with the other guys of his era, namely Barkley, Malone, and Ewing, who were the best of their time but never got a ring. But what's the appeal of this situation? Who would do such a thing?
Of course, there is some recent precedent, with Malone and Gary Payton whoring themselves to the '05 Lakers only to get their asses handed to them by Detroit in the Finals. Payton picked up a ring the next year with Miami, but what's the significance? I'm not Gary Payton, so I don't know what it means for him to have the chance to play on a championship team. But come on, he played 20 mpg and contributed less than 6 ppg in the '06 playoffs. As fans, what do we remember Gary Payton for? World Champion 2006? Hell no, that was Wade's series. Payton was a forgettable role player, no better than Kapono or Posey. Most of us will remember the Glove from the 90's: racking up steals, dishing to Kemp, finding Detlef on the wing.
If Reggie Miller returns then, what will his legacy be? The guy who proved he could contribute 5 ppg off the bench at the age of 42 behind three of the top 12 active scorers? Or the guy who torched the Knicks at MSG for 8 points in the last 30-odd seconds of a game?
I just don't understand the ego or the competitive spirit of a star NBA player. But me, I'd rather have people remember me -- and have myself remember me -- as a guy who performed at an outstanding level and lead his team to many successes, just never the ultimate success, rather than as a wash-up who happened to join the right good team at the right time. What is a fallen star proving by winning a championship as a role player? If anything, he's just adding to the notion that he wasn't championship material and wasn't able to carry a team himself to the championship.
I just can't imagine that Gary Payton looks at his ring and says, "Wow, I really earned this... this is what I worked so hard for in the NBA." I know I wouldn't.
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7 comments:
Actually, I think the allure of a championship is all that much greater for the guys who already have fantastic legacies in the game. They've already got the numbers and the accolades that come with having had excellent careers, but the desire to be the absolute best, even for one year in a diminished role - is obvious.
It's a selfish desire that may seem silly from the outside, sure, but it's definitely an understandable component to what actually drives a competitive athlete wanting to succeed at the highest level.
After all, nobody wants to be remembered as Dan Marino, who I contend (for a couple of years anyway, until I'm certain it's Peyton) is the single greatest passer in NFL history. It's not enough to have the records, the scoring numbers and the stats if you ain't got a ring (in the athlete's mind, I'm not saying it makes them a better/worse player).
That's why, for all these vets that come back for one last grab at a title, I say fine: play as long as someone will pay you to do it.
Although I hated when he came back with the Wizards, I wouldn't mind having Jordan come back just to swat another title away from Miller's goating ass.
If his motivation is simply that he wants to play or that he misses the comraderie and jubilation that comes with team success, I have no problem with that. But I'm with Paul--if he's doing it just so he can say, "Hey, I won a championship!" then that's kind of absurd and almost deceiving. Nothing Miller can do from this point on--i.e. winning a token championship--can augment the greatness of his prime. Because effectively, he'd be an entirely different (read: much worse) player than he was then. The championship-as-a-stamp-of-greatness angle only works when that player takes on a disproportionate responsibility for the team's success. Otherwise, he's just Jud Buchler with a famous name.
Having said all that, I support any decision Reggie Miller wants to make so long as it takes him away from the broadcast table.
I think coming back would tarnish Miller's legacy, unless he hit another memorable clutch three that helped the Celtics advance to somewhere significant (the Finals, staved off elimination in the Finals or (maybe)conference finals, or, of course, won the championship for them). That being said, I do support the move, if only to get him off of TNT, where he adds NOTHING.
Sorry, vinnie. I didn't read that last bit of your comment until I had already posted mine. Didn't mean to jock your style.
Another flaw in Reggie's thinking would be that the Celtics actually have a championship team. They have greatly improved, but I still think that Chicago, Cleveland and Detroit would undoubtedly be better and teams like Miami and Washington would be at the same level as the C's.
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