Reggie Miller gave Steph Curry the blueprint | Offensive Legends Ep. 2
How good was Reggie Miller? Was he a weaker version of Klay Thompson or Ray Allen? Or was he actually one of the best playoff scorers of the era who was never properly understood when he played in the 1990s?
This episode is part of the the second season of the "Greatest Peaks" series. Season 2 focuses on the legends of NBA offense, examining unique archetypes, controversial players and stylistic spearheads who have influenced the game over the years.
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Ben Taylor is the author of Thinking Basketball, a Nylon Calculus contributor, creator of the Backpicks Top 40 series & host of the Thinking Basketball podcast.
Stats courtesy:
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www.basketball-reference.com
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Footage in this video is owned by the NBA and its partners. It is intended for critique and education.
Music
csus (instrumental)
Cody Martin (Epiphany)
Fairlight (Detour In Velour, Hair)
#ThinkingBasketball #OffensiveLegends
As many of you have noted, the Bird record was through 1988, not 1998. Those words sound a lot a like apparently!
One thing to note about Reggie that can't be measured with stats is that he had the most incredible stamina that I've ever seen in a basketball player. He would run around off ball all game long. His defenders chased him around for 3 quarters, running into brick wall screens from Smitts and the Davis boys. Then the 4th would come and Reggie still had opening tip energy and speed while the defenders were worn out. 21 PPG and Reggie being known for his 4th quarter performances. I suspect that Reggie was on cruise control just wearing out his defenders for 3 quarters in a lot of games. Not unlike a boxer who goes to body shots for 10 rounds so that he can wear his opponent down for the later rounds. I can remember watching some Pacers games where Reggie would have like 8 points going into the 4th and explode for 15 points.
Reggie was drafted during the 1987 NBA Draft too
Yep, just like @BradleyTosh said, Miller entered the league in 1987
Can we get a video on Ray Allen? Some argue he was robbed of the 2001 NBA finals appearance, the 2008 finals MVP, 2008 all star MVP & the reason lebron & Miami Heat were saved in 2013!
Please do a video on Charles Barkley please please please
Babe wake up, new Thinking Basketball just dropped
Scratch that, wake up the whole fam
Ong time to roll up and lock inn🤣
Typee shiii
Ben dropped
But actually though I wish my girlfriend knew enough about basketball to appreciate greatness smh
Reggie is a pioneer and it’s even more amazing when you consider the era he played in
creative ball player ... who accepted his weakness in physical game and jumping power ... and develop the shot and a game around it... dude is not talented, but hard work and a determination to compete ... reggie is respected becoz he have a no quit underdog mental game ... i loved his game ... second to pippen .... in the 90s ... like ppl copy him ... that is respect ...
@@josefliudude was talented, just not flawless. Without talent, you don't even make the NBA scouting reports, let alone become a Hall of famer.
@@Jesko_VRS is not physical, he has the height, but he is skinny and cannot jump, he is not athletic ... esp when compared to his peers ... we all know shooting skill is all hard work ... he isn't someone u draft like zion ...
@@josefliu You can work as hard as you want, if you don't have the massive talent needed to make the NBA, you are never ever getting there. Miller made the NBA and left his mark, so he had to be massively talented, he's no unicorn like MJ, but he has raw talent.
@@josefliu"Not talented". That's just going too far. He was 6'7", lengthy, fast, very quick and could shoot the lights out. Yes shooting is a talent. Of course you work hard for that skill, but not everyone has the talent to hone elite shooting. You think Charles Oakley, Shaq, Barkley, bigger stronger guys could ever shoot as well as Miller? No amount of practice makes them as good of shooters as Miller. Part of Miller's elite shooting was having the frame and touch for it. Claiming Miller isn't talented is another way of accrediting "will" or "killer instinct" instead of unique ability and obvious talent.
In so many ways, I love your analysis on players like Miller even more than your series on the greatest peaks. Nobody will ever put Reggie on the GOAT list, but that does nothing to take away from just how effective a player he was, and how terrifying it was to face him late with a small lead.
So true. The greatest are always talked about. But I love hearing deep dives on lesser talked about players.
imagine him and Dennis Rodman on a team just to infuriate their opponents all game. That alone is worth his pickup.
Absolutely. Let's appreciate what players did, rather than comparing them to some absolute standard of perfection...especially since there are no defensive stats that do justice to guys like Olajuwon...
Reggie was also deceptively strong. You can see the defenders wrestling him but dude was strong even with his wiry frame.
Great point. People tend to know decent amount about the greatest but there are other players who aren't top 20 all time players but had major contributions.
Living in Indianapolis my whole life and being born in 1990. Reggie miller is my childhood for sports. Even those retro 90’s jerseys bring back nostalgia that I can’t explain.
Pacers have had some great jerseys over the years, but my favourite was those side chevron kind of things in the 90s.
That jersey those Pacers wore from the early to mid 90’s is one of greatest jerseys ever made🔥🔥🔥
Remember when we tried to name us hwy 31 after him?😂
Born in 91. Lived in indiana all my life. Reggie is the fucking man
Born in 93 baby. R-e-g-g-i-e Reggie from the top of the key!!
Just like greatest peaks, part of the fun of this series is gonna be us guessing/pondering who's gonna get an episode and who won't. This should be good
I was thinking the same thing for this season idk who the hell is gonna pop up maybe Kevin guarnett or dirk but this one is so broad it’s hard to guess
@@t-god2439 I think there's gonna be a third series about great defensive players and KG might be on there. Otherwise, he might just use it to highlight other players since Garnett got a Peak episode
Exactly. I saw a pretty long shot of Manu in the intro and I'm like damn, is Manu going to get his own episode? He could feature some very unexpected names in this series.
Another thing, at least with the greatest peaks episode we got a preview of who was next at the end of the video. No previews so far on these.
@@WhelmedButReady that is true but he also did wilt in both so idk this is so hard to guess but I’m here for it I want to see where it goes
One of the most underrated players of all time. Playoff Reggie was unreal
He was a 5-time All-Star, is in the Hall of Fame, and was recently selected as one of the 75 greatest players ever. How is he "underrated"?
Is he actually underrated? I know he didn't get his Hall of Fame induction right away, but that seems to have been corrected by his inclusion into the list of the 75 (76) greatest players list (by the way, the reveal when he learned he made the list is one of the best honest reactions you'll see from an NBA legend). Fans from the 1990s remember his great moments and his playoff heroics.
"Miller Time"
@@sinatra222 He's underrated by the general public, especially the younger generation that only knows how to judge an old player by stats and accolades
@@jamalwalker ; On a hardcore fan channel like this, Miller is not underrated. But you are right that Miller is underrated by casuals who make up the majority of the fan base.
Love that curry is not letting Reggie’s name be forgotten, so so cool man
Lol what? Reggie is in the top 75 all time and regularly is on TV as an announcer. Nobody is forgetting reggie, the younger generation just might not know who he is
No, the player who's name is being forgotten is Bob Pettit and practically every great player from the 70s not named Jabbar or Oscar Robertson.
That shot of Manu in the opening has me so excited. I hope he gets a full episode breakdown like this. His game is truly unique, and every opportunity to prevent him from becoming known as "just a 6th man" should be taken.
It's episode 2 and I can't wait for season 3 and defense already. This prolly gonna be a banger still
I can't wait for the Rodman episode
@@beechboiii Rodman could end up on the offensive episode more likely than a defensive one! He is 5th all time on Offensive rebounds whereas he sits 22nd all-time on defensive rebounds. Rodman is remembered for his rebounding not only because he was great but because he did it so well on OFFENSE.
@ShynyMagikarp Eh... it would be a pretty damn quick offensive episode for Rodman. Rodman got rebounds. He would usually pass it out to teammates, which bolstered the teams offense. Sometimes he would take the shot. He was not efficient in these shots. How about that Rodman, eh? Whoo boy. Thanks for watching.
@@ShynyMagikarp while his rebounds are definitely the most impressive stat he has, his defensive presence was also huge and instrumental in the teams he was in.
@@supersammich344 Look, I'm not saying he SHOULD be in one of these episodes. If you ask me he probably shouldn't. All I was saying was his case for being in an offensive one may be just as strong if not stronger than a defensive one. Not saying EITHER CASE is strong, or deserved. That is a debate for another reply chain. My point was just to say Rodman's greatest rebound contributions were on the offensive end, and not by a small margin, by a shockingly large margin.
Ray Allen was a stud, but I do find it funny how arguments involving him vs Reggie almost never bring up how Reggie consistently ramped it up in the playoffs and became an elite offensive force
Ray allen is one of the more clutch buzzer beater guys in history too. His best fors and highs came vs the spurs second round with Duncan and Bowen Greg pop defending him and Rasheed Lewis was hurt and under performing big time and he played terrible but ray took them to six games in a year the spurs won the ring. He played good and was a possible finals mvp vs Kobe and the lakers and Kobe couldn’t defend him for long periods. He played great in that stretch where they almost made the nba finals vs iverson and the 76ers in game seven. Ray has had moments too but I would still rank him below reggie in clutchness but against many other ray is probably more clutch than them. We never got to see Reggie miller play on a stack teamed like curry and the warriors with or without durant or ray allen with the Celtics pierce and Garnett so we don’t know how clutch he could have been with less weight on his shoulders to carry. I feel like he would have had some all time feats with more distractions around him allowing him more space to operate.
@@freddyes2242 yes, but because Reggie was the sole Hall of Famer, until the Pacers got Mullin, is what made him more impressive than Allen. Ray couldn't make his team consistent by himself. Reggie WAS the Pacers.
Miller was much more flashy than Ray Allen. Ray was more tactical.
Reggie Miller is underrated while Ray Allen is overrated. Miller vs Jordan was some of the best basketball ever played. Miller vs Spike Lee and the Knicks was legendary. Ray Allen was usually the second or third best player on his own team while Miller was the whole show.
Reggie was way better than Ray Allen
I think Time has been very generous to Reggie Miller. The more time passes, the more people tend to appreciate how good he was. Well deserved.
It has also been generous in that he doesn't look to have aged much (nor put on weight)!
@@gregoryrowlerson8457 I was about to say. He's a vampire lol
Meh depends who you talk to a lot of fans today don't think much of miller a lot just see him as low scoring shooter who couldn't do much else he'll ask Jordan haters he is one of the many "plumbers" Jordan got to play against lol
cus his game would translate perfectly to this era.. he didnt shoot 3's with alot of volume back in the day.... also with less physical defense i assume he would be even more punishing off ball. also... lmao the nba made a rule called the " reggie miller rule " because he was pioneer at drawing fouls when he was shooting by kicking his leg out. he would have found other ways to do it in this era.
If he was playing in this era would prob add 5-10 points to his regular season average. No defense today plus all the foul shots he would get.
Another great video from TB. It’s interesting that Miller was not only punished by the anti-three-point sentiment of his day, but also by a lack of reliable three-point shooting around him. In a world where there’s only one or two volume 40% three-point shooters in the league, teams can’t even effectively take advantage of the gravity of such an elite sniper because everyone else is packed within 18 feet. Curry creates layups for Green, but Miller couldn’t do the same for , say, Smits - not because he wasn’t a good enough shooter or even because coaches didn’t value the three appropriately, but because the ancillary shooters that you’d need to create the space for Smits to roll to the basket just didn’t exist. In 2015, even excluding Klay, Curry had enough shooting around him to mitigate this issue. It’s both impressive and unfortunate that Miller was so ahead of his time. It’s fun to imagine what you could do as a time-traveling GM if you could acquire him and surround him with good-enough shooting.
That's all I could think about while watching this video it's weird to think that you could make a lot of average basketball intelligent people today a gm/coach in the 70s-90s and really go crazy with the right pieces
I’d have to disagree here… from the KD era and onwards the Warriors’ spacing has been subpar relative to the rest of the league. Their starting lineup features two complete non shooters - an absolute no go for many teams
@@JohnSmith-th6wr Subpar? Are you kidding me? Not every team has shooter the caliber of Klay on the wing. Even fewer teams have someone like Wiggins as another catch and shoot 3-ball who is good. Otto Porter and Jordan Poole in the 21-22 season are good above average shooters with Poole being 3rd in 3pt volume for the team. If anything there aren't enough teams who have the quality shooting *AND* option for ball handlers that the Warriors have. Especially come playoff time. Draymond as a non-shooter is counter balanced by his ability to handle the ball and pass. The Kings roster is not any better in those roles and they were the darlings of floor spacing last season while playing at a break neck pace in the regular season.
Even without that he still created enough space for teammates by mlving
@@JohnSmith-th6wr I kinda agree that relative to the league the warriors spacing actually isn't that great anymore. However any edition of the modern warriors are miles ahead of the 90s Pacers in terms of the absolute spacing they have on the court.
Understanding the gravity that you posses to bend a defense is a massive skill that all stars should learn to be effective without the ball
Not all stars have gravity off the ball though. Like Jokic, giannis, lebron, etc…much more effective with the ball in their hand
@@tw7321 That's not true, even without a solid jumpshot understanding leverage against your defender can still lead to wide open shots for other teammates to get open on the outside, because you force the rotation on say a dive cut to the lane. If NBA stars even just spent even a little bit of time studying how wide receivers get open, alot more easier buckets could be generated. That's why I give major props to reggie miller. He played the game of basketball like a wide receiver constantly getting open.
@@kanajingly8957I agree with you to an extent, but I think there's two aspects to it: how valuable you are off-ball, *and* what's the delta between your on ball and off ball value. the LeBron greatest peaks video talks about it, he's always been a great cutter and became an ok shooter but considering he's one of the greatest slashers and playmakers ever that's a lot less valuable than having the ball in his hands, and it's a reason he gives Jordan's peak a slight edge. your off ball value can only be so much without being a great shooter off the catch, the next best thing is being a devastating rim runner, with shaq being the most extreme example, but that's an aspect of value only bigs can fully access. and guys who derive a lot of their value from passing are always going to skew ball dominant, jokic is definitely a huge outlier, it would be very interesting to see bird play today, as.the other great "off ball passer" in history, but more perimeter oriented
I think the gravity, auxiliary creation, off-ball playmaking, portability, scalability, and overall adroitness of Reginald Miller was so stimulating that it sways me to put him over James Harden in my totally not arbitrary and useless peak for peaks list!!! I really think Ben would agree with me.
This is one of those moments when I really hear “Where is Larry Bird in all this ?” The role of the disruptor and a great off ball player. Yes, Reggie was ahead of his time. Thanks for this.
Reggie was a nightmare... Watching your team play against his Pacers is a recipe for nervous breakdown, even if your team is up by 10 with 2 minutes remaining. That teammate grab play is legendary.
Players like Steph and Jokic not needing to dominate the ball make their teams better sense their not forced to be spot up/corner shooters
exactly, the Oscar Robertson, Lebron, Harden, Westbrook, Luka template is overrated. Big stat piling and only Oscar and LeBron could win that way when they formed superteams. If you take a closer look, you can have very good regular season records playing that way, but it always comes crashing down in the playoffs until of course the decks are stacked with talent like Oscar teaming with Kareem and LeBron teaming with everyone
@@HailKingCeezer not really considering lebron did went to the finals with two pretty mid/awful teams. plus they werent really op superteams. the cavs never really had a big three with how love played, wade declined steadily during the heatles years and bosh underperformed frequently and ad and lebron are just a duo. considering he won with every team he has, none of his teamates has had succes after him, and the fact the he had probably around or lesser teams than guys like bird or magic, i think that template works if you have an all time player and just actual championship calliber teams. now yes it is definitely safer to play the curry/jokic style, although jokic seems to be a cross between lebron and curry as he doesnt really move off ball that much and does pass like a dominating playymaker, i dont think its valid to undervalue the lebron, robertson ways. at the ende of the day if you have the right team it will work. just let me remind you that many players have tried to move into superteams and so far the only consistent succes is lebron so go figure. also kareem didnt won without oscar or magic so i guess that dominating playmakers are also very important in championships.
@@HailKingCeezer LeBron and Luka are exceptions. Luka just needs a proper team. He’s been the truth since he was a rookie
@@mythification11 COOK😮💨
@@mythification11 Lebron's teams are not awful especially his 2nd stint Cavs teams. The man only knows how to play one style, him dominating the basketball. This reduces his teammates abilities and since they don't practice, they look "awful" when he is not out there because they are just waiting for him to check back in. One of the main reasons why his teams in his latter years were successful was because his competition in the East was not as talented, so the Cavs could coast in the regular season and when they pull up in the finals, they always got outplayed.
YUUUUUUS, I've always wanted a Reggie Miller video. From anybody really, but Thinking Basketball? My life is complete.
26:20 This is truly amazing I’m blown away I didn’t know he was THAT good🫡 Imagine that ten year run from 92-02 in this era😮💨 He was ahead of his time for sure
Same -- I think when Dean Oliver first ran "advanced" numbers over 20 years ago, he thought the Miller data was an error.
@@ThinkingBasketball You’re a GOAT for *TRUE* basketball analysis🫡 I love your content and you’re the only person who could justify Kobe not being top 10 to me Never stop putting out videos
@@ThinkingBasketball Who would you say is a comparable player to Reggie in the past twenty years
@@greedyglo and annoying
@@greedyglo and a butt kisser
Ben finally got to make his Reggie Miller video!
I play the long game!
Reggie was so good, extremely underrated for what he did in his time. Him and especially Rip Hamilton were always fun to watch cause they kept moving and had great jumpers. Fun fact Reggie was the only superstar in the 90’s to push MJ’s Bulls to 7 games but in the ECF I believe
in 1990 the bulls and pistons went to 7 games in the ecf and the pistons won
The '92 Knicks and Bulls went to 7.
Thanks guys lmao
While not the only team, the Pistons were favorites and hosted game 7, and the Knicks had no chance of winning game 7 at Chicago Stadium. But the Pacers went into Chicago as underdogs and made every Bulls fan hold their breath until late in the game. That in itself was a great accomplishment.
@@mrmacross yeah that’s why I brought it up. Came straight from Jordan’s mouth that the Pacers were tough like the Pistons. They had a real shot to bounce the Bulls especially after Reggie hit that Game 6 three
As a Warriors fan, so many of these plays shown in the first part are to the letter what the Dubs do. I now wish I was in a position to interview Kerr because I wonder whether he took some of his playbook from those Pacers teams.
He was on basketball breakdown interview a few days ago and he says his plays are directly from the Bulls triangle and San Antonio's motion offense. I love thinking basketball but i completely disagree with how he painted comparing Miller off ball to MJ on ball. Mike made fast decisions and was not a ball pounder and was great off ball himself, whether running around screens or post positioning. The Bulls triangle had beautiful off ball movement.
@@HailKingCeezer He didn't "paint" it any way. If you're implying that he painted Miller as just as valuable as Jordan, that's obviously not the case, as he has a greatest peak series and Miller isn't on it while Jordan is tops. He was just showing how the two generated offense in different ways and Jordan's is much more obvious to onlookers.
I really like these kinds of videos about the 'other guys', so to speak. There's a lot more chatter about Larry Bird or Michael Jordan than there is about Reggie Miller. I feel as if I learn a lot more from videos like these.
Amazing video. This is one of the best videos on Reggie Miller I have ever seen. Pls make one on Charles Barkley. He shortly missed out on the top 10 greatest peaks list you made. I have a feeling you already plan on making one video on him.
Weirdly I knew of Reggie Miller before I knew of MJ as a kid (around 2005-6). Definitely most underrated of all time
Your breakdowns help me to appreciate basketball and its athletes and coaches so much more. Thank you ❤
I can't believe that greatest peaks is back! I'm so pumped!
Thank you for making this video! Reggie was one of my favorite players growing up as a kid. One mistake in the video, he was drafted in ‘88, not ‘98 (which I’m sure you knew).
taking MJ to 7 games in your rookie year would be insane lol
Reggie's leaner was lethal. That was that era's floater.
Imagine FG % being the standard for efficiency 🤣🤣
Miller is one of my top 3 favorite players all time, I was thrilled to sit and watch this. Before Dame-time it was Miller-time and if I needed a player to play 5 minutes of clutch time to save my life, Miller is my number one.
When I think of pure shooters I think of Reggie Miller first. Kids don't know that this man stood up to Jordan.
I'm wondering if we ever really thought of Reggie "scoring on" Jordan because using screens was seen as a weird crutch back then.
@@ThinkingBasketball that's an excellent point. Reggie Miller wasn't your stereotypical baller and I wonder how much that's plagued the minds of superficial basketball fans over time (keep in mind, pre-social media.) And hurt his brand. When you think of a baller, it's Shawn Kemp's athleticism, Magic's finesse, Jordan's 'airness.' Reggie is a nice guy. All in the midst of an NBA crowd who want smashing the boards and hard fouls-a generation that faux-proudly proclaims this generation is soft. "Soft as Charmin," Kobe would say. Thanks for responding. Didn't you make it big and get a gig or something? Big ups to you, my man.
Oldheads are so anti-off ball. That’s why they don’t understand and appreciate the beauty of the modern game. It’s crazy that Reggie pulled this off in a old era
Shutup kid
This channel is so good. I don’t even actively watch basket-ball anymore, sometimes in the playoffs, but these videos are just great and interesting anyway.
Definitely ahead of his time💯 He would get a *BAG* in this era😂
M0r0n
So nice to see these longform videos when you're able to put them together.
Loved this. Those 90s Pacers teams were always sooo close.
@ThinkingBasketball thank you SO MUCH for doing legendary basketball player series like you've been doing. To Ben Taylor & the rest of the contributors to the channel, PLEASE keep up the fantastic work. As a somewhat young fan & player, your "Greatest Peaks" series helped me assimilate the skillsets, mentality, & play styles of certain NBA legends i can incorporate into my game. I'm TOO ANXIOUS to see who all the featured players of this Offensive Legends series will be. And finally, i can only assume optimistically that there will be a DEFENSIVE Legends series forthcoming.👀🙏🏿
amazing work. keep these coming.
Just found this channel and I subscribed the moment the video was done. I have never seen someone break down Reggie Miller's game before. It gave me whole new appreciation for Reggie and the 90's Pacers in general. Great video!
I always enjoy content from this channel, and it enables me to enjoy the sport and the athletes in a richer way.
M0r0n
I have such vivid memories of playing NBA on my N64. I was like 7, and being Nordic I knew NOTHING about how basketball worked, but I knew one thing - I could hit shots with Reggie Miller! Absolutely loved it
Reggie was one of my favorite players growing up, thank you for doing this series. Can't wait to see which player you do next. Cheers!
This was an excellent video! As a long-time nba fan, I appreciate the deep breakdown of this legend.
THERA GONNA BE A MANU EPISODE?!?!? LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
the goat is back with another basketball masterclass , i hope you keep making these , i am so doing for the steve nash episode , keep it up
M0r0n
Being from Indiana and growing up during Reggie's prime, he is the reason I fell in love with basketball. He stayed loyal to a small market team and gave our state a ton of memories. I still think they would've won the championship the year of the malice at the palace thing. That was sad to see that happen at the end of his career. Great video
I just wanted to say it was so awesome to see you on NBA KZhead breaking down one of my favorite nba finals game! You are a national treasure.
That bit about all that holding and grabbing Miller did actually made me want a video or series on what makes some "dirty" players successful (Miller, Laimbeer, Artest, etc.), or how some can overcome the reputation while others embrace it or are haunted by it (again Miller, Laimbeer, Artest...)
Would be interesting to see content about that. I think there are 2 buckets you can put these type of players' with their 'dirty' on court play. You have players like Grayson Allen and the Morris Twins who end up playing overly physical which is perceived dirty because that is their limitations. They are good defensively against most players but they will get burned against the best regardless of how much smarter or physical they have to be. Then you have Reggie Millers' pulling actions and driving himself for contact in traffic. He gets away with it in part because he's already playing physical having to bump with other guys off-ball and him being a 185 lb string bean. So he's a smaller looking guy already inviting for contact either way. You can also lump Garnett giving birth to moving screens in the late 2000s. Which is a cue that since a well placed one is hard to discern in play for refs, physical bigs with even post 2013 Bogut (who was already limited offensively) would be Steph's first PnR partner via moving screens. They Draymond would learn how to play that game with Steph later.
Love this. Reggie was my favourite player growing up.
I've been waiting for this episode, thank you!
This is a great breakdown of Reggie miller game. He one of the most underrated players of all-time. He had more playoff success in da 90's other than the Bulls with less talent.
respect to Reggie, he was one of my favorite players in that era.
I absolutely love how Reggie Miller played, especially when he got to shine in the playoffs
This is a brilliant episode, incredible piece of work. Thank you
Great video! Thank you for the work that you put in.
The long twos some of these amazing shooters took before three point shooting really took off is infuriating. Dirks 2011 playoffs are such an example. He was insane this season but if you rewatch those games you see how often he catches the ball behind the three point line, takes a step forward and shoots (and obviously hits) the longest possible two. If I would watch something like that live today I might attack the TV. I wonder how much he would have dominated if he took those threes.
He would dominate regardless even if his diet of 3 FGA were lower for the modern standard. The key with Dirk's game was that even if he had range from beyond the arc, he was still money from working the mid range via a back to basket game. Which he could turn to a contested shot into FTs (which he had a good amount of FTAs throughout his prime) or into his patented big man fade away jumper. Besides the spacing worked out because Dirk was also flanked with shooters throughout his key playoff runs.
Part of what hurts Reggie is them not making the finals. But when you have to play through MJ and those Knicks teams, it's gonna be tough. Thank you for the Pacers and Reggie love!
Miller and the Pacers made the Finals in 2000.
@@sideshowbobsaget8876 right 1 time on the back end of his career. They had better teams in earlier years that either lost in the first round or ran into the Knicks and Bulls.
@@TheBackno Well it certainly sucks Reggie played his prime ball in an era of another legendary players' prime and in the same Conference no less. Also sucked that he played under then under Larry Brown who is a great defensive minded coach but was stubborn in some ways with how he liked his team lineups. Which is no wonder why Bird as the Coach was able to get the Miller core pieces and surround him with an infusion of other talents to overachieve getting into the Finals. But also running into the buzzsaw that is the Lakers quest for a 3peat.
Thanks for sharing! I’ve been trying to learn how I can contribute to my team more off ball and this gives me more reason to learn to run around without the ball
love the content, glad to see you upping your game
Reggie was ELITE. That Reggie vs Knicks 30 for 30 really sheds light on his killer mode
Miller is today one of a paltry few b-ball talking heads who is worth hearing. I enjoyed your thoughtful retrospective for an inventive, skilled player who inspired future generations and raised the level of play for his team.
His monday interviews on dan Patrick show are great
Thank you so much for the video. It's brilliant.
Reggie Miller and John Stockton were my guys growing up back in Chicago! My Bulls were cool, but those two men were the reason I initially fell in love with the game.
The thumbing technique you pointed out at 11:48 actually isn't all that unusual. There's a few players who do it, Kyrie being the most prominent I can think of. The shooting hand wrist pronation is definitely weird, but I would guess it's probably actually training scars from his youth where he was told to end his shot with his off hand touching his shooting hand wrist. That's a good learning technique for making sure his arms stay balanced, but obviously nobody told him to stop doing that later (probably because he was so naturally gifted shooting that they didnt want to mess with success)
Reggie is a legend and one of the best to ever do it. He was 6'6 and 195 lbs, if he was 210-215 lbs like today's players he could've dominated even more
People and the Basketball world will grow to appreciate you more. For the basketball education that you give. Talking about legends and explaining why and what makes them legends is so valuable for the next generation of basketball players. You can not get this type of brake down no where else. I me myself appreciate you for helping me understand the game more🙏🏾 you on to something big for the game of basketball Ben. You have to keep goin, the game need you bro.🔥🏀
Bless you for this. Huge Miller and Pacers fan growing up in Houston, Texas and had to fight so many battles explaining how Reggie was the future.
I always thought Reggie's jumper was beautiful. Back in the 90s there weren't so much footage of 'how to shoot it right' so I just ran with how Reggie did it because it seemed to efficient and fluent. I actually molded my game after Reggie. I was the lanky guy in my teens with high stamina so I kept on running around and around on offense, tiring up my opponents and launched my shot when I got an opening from the catch. And when my opponents eventually started to pay more attention to my off ball movements suddenly my mates got more time and room for their moves.
Enjoying this series so much man, you should cover Tracy McGrady or Carmelo Anthony. Both were so elite offensively and made it look so easy to score the ball, I’d love to see a break down of either their games.
Grew up east side Naptown. Loved watching Reggie. Appreciated how surprisingly balanced this video was, making exquisitely clear why Miller was great but also his limits and downsides. New to your channel, good stuff!
Fantastic idea for a series, I’m really looking forward to each episode
Awesome. Making my way through my rewatch of Greatest Peaks and this is exactly what I wanted to see pop up in this series! Hoping so badly for a Steve Nash episode soon too
those passes by mckey were amazing!
I modeled my own game after Reggie despite me being a lifelong bulls fan. I cannot tell u the joy when i saw you were breaking this down. As usual excellent video
Great work thinking basketball you're coming through with that good in depth analysis
i can’t wait for the Defensive legends
Need this for sure especially in the modern era
@@greedyglothere is no defense in the modern era
Finally! No one really acknowledges how good Reggie Miller was. I've been saying this since Curry's unanimous MVP season. He is what Miller and Ray Allen would be if the green lights were given to them during their time.
Steph has far superior handles and vision to either Miller or Allen.
great video content always!
Reggie was so ahead of his time and deserves way more credit for popularizing the 3 point shot
I'm glad we're all starting to recognize Reggie Miller is one of the greatest and most efficient shooters of all time, no pun intended, next to Steph Curry
I need an analysis of Allen Iverson from this channel ASAP
New subscriber, and hit like. 14:07 that pass, damn. Great editing and content. You can tell how much time spend on these. Thanks for the laughs.
What a break down! I loved this video very much! Reggie Miller was a true matter of the offball game.
Reggie is weird for having a funky form that's graceful at the same time
Yes! He’s got an awkward sort of grace. It’s compelling to watch. It must be as compelling for the players on the court with him. You can’t take your eyes of him.
M0r0ns
1:20... Bro the stats you said blew me away. SO I looked it up and you were incorrect, Reggie came in the league "1988" not 1998. Thats why I was confused... so yes in 1988 I think Bird had more 350 3 pointers or so... he ends up getting more than that. But id go back and fix that because it had me stumped
Clueless little boy
thank you for this. my introduction to the nba was watching reggie's 25 point 4th quarter on NBC as a kid, and i've been a megafan ever since.
glad to see Reggie and his Pacers get more recognition. Great vid as always!
Fuck yeah a Reggie Miller video
To me it is crazy to call him dependent on good teammates, and not say that he enhances the other players. Not just because of current basketball and statistics, but more so on fotball and just having Messi on your team gives everyone an extra second to controll the ball
Another great video. I remember watching Miller as a kid and once I saw this title, I recognized it instantly. Well done!
this was an awesome video. very informative. learned about reggie's game.
I know he already talks about Jokic a lot, but I wonder if there is gonna be a Jokic episode
I hope not. We got like 10 Episodes on him already lol
Can you please do Dennis Rodman. Please please. I think he was one of the most impactful players ever to have such a low ppg average.
Well, considering that this is an “offensive legends” series, I don’t think we’ll be seeing a Rodman vid anytime soon XD
Incredible story telling on this. I love the off-ball players that make themselves a threat without the ball. Those tend to be the dangerous ones because it splits your attention and makes rotating very difficult.
Excellent breakdown. Appreciate the basketball IQ you brought to the analysis. Well done!
Reggie, MJ, Shaq, AI, Bird, Magic, Hakeem are the prime examples of players who are ahead of their time. They set blueprints for present players, so that youtube kids today can claim that current era are more talented than the past while the actual young stars today respect their predecessors.
i personally feel because of how limited of a shot creator for himself and others and how limited he was in every other aspect of basketball i just don’t see how he’d be so much better today when players these days are always judged on how versatile they are. he was just a catch and shoot player essentially (a great one with great winning intangibles) but i don’t think he was overrated or underrated, he was properly rated to me.
Isn't klay Thompson quite limited he is basically a catch and shoot player
This video literally showcases Reggie Miller creating shots for himself & teammates without the basketball. He was ahead of his era since the late 80s-90s didn't heavily emphasize the three. Look at Klay Thompson today who has a similar game/play style to Reggie Miller. Klay is a multiple time All-Star & All-NBA player. Why wouldn't Reggie excel in today's NBA with the rules more catered to his play style? He also averaged 3asts per game as an off-guard so he clearly could also create some scoring opportunities for others with the ball. Just watch the video & you'll see that Reggie was more than capable of creating for himself & others on/off ball. His prime was in a lower scoring era.
@@ogmusik2549yes, and like Reggie, he's an all-star but not a superstar (although he does have his moments), he has never done anything as the 1st option (funnily enough both also have 5 all-star selections)
@@atlien1988 i meant on ball creation obviously
@@ogmusik2549 yes and how much better was reggie than klay skill wise, my comment says i don’t see how he’d be that much better today…find me a player in the current nba that has reggie skillset that is a number 1 option on any team.
keep em coming brother loved this video. made me appreciate reggie miller
So young and dumb
Excellent episode.