42. Reggie Miller

The greatest Pacer player ever and one of the greatest shooters of all-time. Reggie Miller had a prolific career in the NBA all with the Pacers and one that spanned from the late 80s to the early 2000s. Miller was sometimes underrated by fans because of where he played but he was always respected by the opposition.
Miller attended the historic UCLA program and is widely considered one if it’s finer guards. Miller played for seasons for the Bruins appearing in 122 career games and owning averages of 17 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.
The Indiana Pacers drafted Reggie Miller with the 11th pick in the 1987 NBA draft. Miller had a solid but not spectacular rookie season averaging 10 points a game and appearing in all 82 games but only starting once. Miller broke into the starting lineup his second year and averaged 16 a game.
Miller became a star his third year when he averaged nearly 25 a game and made his first all-star appearance. He would also make the Pacers a constantly playoff threat. Miller averaged 20 or more points from 1990 until 1997 but would only be selected to three all-star teams. Despite all his scoring and some regular season success the Pacers never won very much Miller.
The Pacers made deep runs in 1994 and 1995 but never got over the hump to make the finals. The Pacers reloaded after missing the playoffs in 1996 and made two consecutive runs to the east finals but lost both times. They came close to dethroning the Michael Jordan Bulls but lost in 7 games. In 2000 the Pacers finally made the NBA finals but where dispatched by the Los Angeles Lakers.
Following the finals year Miller became much more of a role player seeing his scoring drop to the mid teens, but the team had much more success in these years and was a title contender. The Pacers title contention hopes where dashed, however, first by the Detroit Pistons who beat them in 7 games in 2004, than by the Malice in the Palace.
The Malice in the Palace is often considered to be one of the darker moments in American sports history. The Pacers and Pistons got in a brawl which ended up with the game being called with 42 seconds left, Ron Artest getting suspended for the year, Jermaine O’Neal and Stephen Jackson also getting hefty suspensions. Reggie Miller too was suspended for leaving the bench during the fight, though Miller was not playing that day.
The brawl left the Pacers scared and hurt Millers legacy. He retired after the 2005 season having played in 1,389 career games averaging 18 points a game.
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