Season in Review: Andre Miller
by jsams on May 10, 2009 10:37 AM PDT
24 comments
Me and Andre Miller have had an interesting relationship during his tenure as the Sixers point guard. Three years ago he was the guy replacing Allen Iverson -- safe to say he had some big shoes to fill.
When Miller played his first game in a 76ers uniform, all I was concerned with was losing. Yeah, I wanted the Sixers to lose as many games as possible in order to have enough ping pong balls to land either Greg Oden or Kevin Durant. It's not something I'm proud of, but it happened.
So in comes Andre Miller. He's replacing a Sixers legend, and I'm rooting for him to lose games, or be traded for young prospects. Not an easy situation for a slow, soft-spoken, droopy dog-like veteran to win me over, is it?
Three years later Andre Miller has done the unthinkable. He has earned my respect though his leadership, his slow motion speed, his awkward interviews and his toughness. Andre Iguodala is the face of the franchise. Thaddeus Young has the potential to be great. But if I had to nominate a player for MVP of the 2008-2009 Sixers, it'd be Andre Miller.
Sad thing is, number seven might have played his last game in Philadelphia.
Best games: These are the three Andre Miller games that stand out in my mind.
@ San Antonio -- 28 points, 12-14 shooting, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 turnover
Even though the Sixers lost, and Miller's bad pass led to the Tony Parker game-winner, Miller was a monster in this game. The Spurs tried defending Miller with everyone -- Parker, Mason, Ginobili, Bowen. Regardless of who was defending him, Miller drilled shot, after shot, after shot, finishing 12-14 from the field.
@ Miami -- 30 points, 11-21 shooting, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 0 turnovers.
Miller wasn't even supposed to play in this game after suffering a painful right calf strain the game before. Some people questioned whether he was just trying to keep his streak of 500+ consecutive games played alive. Miller answered his critics with a spotless game, and became the Sixers first player to score 30 points all season.
@Orlando -- 30 points, 12-20 shooting, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals.
The Sixers offense was as stagnant as it had been all season. Andre Miller sensed it, and took over the first quarter of the game. Eventually his jumpshot stopped falling and he deferred to the other Andre -- who scored 20 second half points -- but the image of Miller abusing Rafer Alston in the first quarter will be forever etched in my memory.
Interestingly enough all of Miller's "best games" were Sixer losses. This means one of two things. Either my definition of "best games" is way off, or Miller's scoring was a lot less important to the Sixers than we thought... or both.
Grade: B+
Miller played all 82 games, and played them well. He was perfect floor general for a young team. He scored when necessary. He passed when necessary. He did everything he could for this Sixers team -- and then some. Whether or not we've seen the last of Andre Miller in a Philadelphia 76ers uniform, I'll always have the utmost respect for him.
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he definitely reminds me of droopy dog too
http://www.libertyballers.com/
by Remis on May 10, 2009 10:42 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Whether or not we’ve seen the last of Andre Miller in a Philadelphia 76ers uniform, I’ll always have the utmost respect for him.
here, here
http://www.libertyballers.com/
by Remis on May 10, 2009 10:43 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
YES
I love your write-ups and could not agree more with this one. Amazing.
by guitarmouse35 on May 10, 2009 10:56 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
It's clear
That when Miller had to take the onus upon himself to score, it was because nobody else could. This is even more evidence of our anemic play in the half court. We need a point guard that can beat his man off the dribble and look to pass to incorporate teammates. I appreciate what he did here because it was necessary with this team, but to win in the playoffs, we need a cohesive offensive unit out there, something we did not have with Miller at the helm. 46 days til the draft.
by TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsMichaelBourn on May 10, 2009 10:59 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Tell me again why this team needs a scoring point guard instead of a passing point guard?
Even that DX article – it’s obsessed with (and pretty much only talks about) scoring of the point guards only
"Someone created the box score," Morey says, "and he should be shot."
Blocked shots — they look great, but unless you secure the ball afterward, you haven’t helped your team all that much.
by jemagee on May 10, 2009 12:19 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
We don't necessarily need a scorer.
Just someone who can stretch the defense and hit open threes consistently.
However; pure passer is probably number one on my list.
by jsams on May 10, 2009 12:28 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Then you like calathes
"Someone created the box score," Morey says, "and he should be shot."
Blocked shots — they look great, but unless you secure the ball afterward, you haven’t helped your team all that much.
by jemagee on May 10, 2009 12:33 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah
We don’t necessarily need a guy who’s going to look to score, just somebody who can/will score if he’s left alone. And obviously somebody who can stretch the defense with the three-ball would be great, especially on the current assumption that either Bill Green or Iggy will be the shooting guard most of the time.
by zfg on May 10, 2009 1:08 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
This has nothing to do with your comment.
But I’m glad you mentioned Iggy at the two. I think a lot of people make two ridiculous assumtions.
1. Iggy can’t play the two.
2. Brand can’t play with this team.
I think both these are very incorrect, but only time will tell.
by jsams on May 10, 2009 2:17 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
evidently i was combing Agree and Farooq from the Acolytes. Meant to go with “agree.”
by TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsMichaelBourn on May 10, 2009 8:01 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
This kinda goes against what I said earlier.
But if there’s one guy above every other PG I want, it’s Flynn.
by jsams on May 10, 2009 2:21 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
I'd also love to get Steph Curry.
But that’s wishful thinking. I know he’s not a point guard and a risky lottery pick, but if you can shoot, you can shoot — which is exactly what we need.
by jsams on May 10, 2009 2:43 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
He won't fall
And we need a distributing point guard and one that can lead the break, Stephen Curry is not your man. He could succeed with D’Antoni but that’s about it. Still eyeing Flynn, Lawson, Maynor.
by TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsMichaelBourn on May 10, 2009 8:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
He won’t fall and he won’t succeed in the NBA at the level at which he is drafted unless he plays for the Knicks where defense is secondary…
"Someone created the box score," Morey says, "and he should be shot."
Blocked shots — they look great, but unless you secure the ball afterward, you haven’t helped your team all that much.
by jemagee on May 11, 2009 7:45 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah, I wanted the Sixers to lose as many games as possible in order to have enough ping pong balls to land either Greg Oden or Kevin Durant. It’s not something I’m proud of, but it happened.
So did many people, so did I, and it would have been better for the long term health and success of the sixers franchise is they had maintained the worst record in the league (i believe they had one of the worst, if not the worst, record in the league at the time of the trade) – the ‘success’ of the andre miller years really only left the team mired where it was at the end of the Iverson era – mediocre – good enough to make the playoffs but unable to get out of the first round.
And personally I think they’re a long way from getting out of the first round….while other teams are getting better – the sixers aren’t – nor are they getting worse – they’re just running in place in my opinion – and that’s just sad.
"Someone created the box score," Morey says, "and he should be shot."
Blocked shots — they look great, but unless you secure the ball afterward, you haven’t helped your team all that much.
by jemagee on May 11, 2009 10:00 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Miller was everything we needed. His consistent play on both ends of the floor helped balance out a young team. He has never been a big scorer, just a descent one who makes enough jumpers so that you had to stick him. Iggy has turned out to be a great player and the face of the franchise and it looks like Thad is taking a similar path. Theres 3 players that deserve a starting role. Sammy can block shots and rebound, but his basketball IQ is lacking and his mistakes sometimes cause us to lose all of our momentum. Then theres Willie Green. Inconsistentcy at its best. No team is going to get out of the first round with a two guard averaging 8ppg. Next year lets hope Iggy will be playing the two, Brand will be healthy and effective, and we get a PG who can spread the offense by sticking 3’s and slicing down the lane. Either Lawson or Flynn would do the trick, I would prefer Flynn.
by jjh5166 on May 11, 2009 5:10 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
I always thought Miller reminded me of Richard Pryor personally—a little bit of his looks, but his voice sounds a lot like him (minus the expletives, of course).
Miller is a great team player—sorry to see him go if that happens—but the team has a host of problems they have to solve and it’s not just limited to PG. Lou Williams at the point is indeed scary, but Dalembert has no place on this team with Brand back. And he only plays when he feels like it and makes dumb mistakes more often than not. He clearly doesn’t want to be here, either. What a mess. So many “what if’s” had King not shackled this team to bad contracts.
by doubleh on May 12, 2009 9:49 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Miller
I have a hard time understanding where most Sixers fans are coming from? Obviously this is a .500 team that struggles in the half court, both offensively and defensively. But, what’s confusing to me is the reasons I frequently hear as causes for this inconsistency. Do we really feel that Miller is a contributing factor to that? Have we all forgotten that we have an 80 million dollar power forward sitting on the bench? Have we forgotten that this was the worst perimeter shooting team in the league? If you are asking for a pass first point guard, you’ve got one of the best, if not the best in the league. We can’t really expect a rookie point guard (Flynn, Lawson, Maynor…etc) to step in and be a better, more productive fit for this team can we? The reason that Miller’s “best games” ended with Sixer losses is because he’s best when distributing the basketball. If teammates fail to convert, that is on them and not the point guard. Miller will be 33 next season and his salary might price the Sixers out of the market, but beyond that there is absolutely no reason to not want him back. So often I hear his one-on-one defense is terrible. Granted he’s not going to win any defensive awards, but just look at the playoffs. Rondo is widely considered one of the best defensive guards in the league and he got torched by a rookie. Transversely, that same budding star, allowed Rondo to average nearly a triple double. The same can be seen in the Western Conference. Parker, Billups, Paul and D. Williams all posted huge stat lines. With the way the game is called these days guards simply can not defend their position. Furthermore, Steve Nash is a terrible defender, yet he managed to win multiple MVP awards. In my opinion this team will continue to progress or decline with the efficiency at which the combination of Iguodala, Young and Brand can score the basketball. This post is not directed at anyone I just needed to vent, this has been a difficult year as a fan. Unfortunately, I believe Miller is good as gone, I think he’ll end up in Portland and could very well be the veteran leader that team needs.
by westsportsbias on May 18, 2009 12:06 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
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