MIAMI â€" When Mike Miller fell to the court during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers, he certainly didn't spring to an upright position.
By Greg M. Cooper, US Presswire
Mike Miller, shown during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, has played in all 18 Heat playoff games despite myriad injuries.
By Greg M. Cooper, US Presswire
Mike Miller, shown during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, has played in all 18 Heat playoff games despite myriad injuries.
Slowly, deliberately, he pushed himself up. Heat guard Mario Chalmers ran to Miller and helped him to his feet.
Even casual observers can see Miller is in pain. He has a bad back, a bad left ankle and possibly a sports hernia that did not heal properly after surgery in late November. He could need two surgeries after the season.
Every movement on and off the court is an exercise in pain management. Miller, 32, shuffles more than he walks and hobbles with pace more than he runs.
Bending over to put on his socks generates a painful groan. There should be a wheelchair waiting for Miller at the airport gate.
Despite all of that, Miller has appeared in all 18 Heat playoff games.
"He's one of the toughest guys I've been around," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. "He spends half the game on the floor, diving and putting his body in harm's way to help the team win."
Could Miller put a percentage on his health? Say, 85%, 70%, 60%? "I'm standing," is all Miller would say.
"Just keep grinding. As long as I'm there, still standing at the end, that's all that matters," said Miller, in his 12th NBA season.
After Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics, Miller said, "The best-case scenario, we have a month of basketball left. Anyone can get through anything in a month. Health won't be an issue or excuse that I have through the whole thing."
This is not how it was supposed to go for Miller. The Heat signed him to a five-year, $29 million deal in 2010, shortly after Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh agreed to come together in a stunning free agent coup.
The Heat wanted Miller to be the player at the three-point line keeping teams honest or driving to the basket and passing to open teammates.
He had a candid understanding of his role. The 30 minutes and 10-plus shots a game weren't going to be there for him on a team with three All-Stars.
"Those guys averaged 28, 30 points. Why do we think it's going to be different on this team?" Miller said of the role players. "The math says you can only score so many points a game. We've got to do the little things. … Make your shots when you get them, rebound, play defense and hustle."
But his time with Miami has mostly been defined by injuries.
Miller missed 37 games because of injuries in 2010-11: 29 with a right thumb injury, three with an ear issue, three with a bruised left knee, one with a sprained ankle and one with a right eye contusion.
After last season's NBA Finals, Miller had surgery on his right shoulder. The sports hernia surgery sidelined him for 12 games at the start of this season, and Miller missed 14 games late in the season with a sprained ankle.
"It's been difficult that way," Miller said. "But you have to look at the good things the basketball gods have given me. It's been up and down, but it's been worth the ride.
"It's just the excitement of being able to play a bunch of playoff games, the NBA Finals and now a couple of Eastern Conference finals."
Against Indiana, he had 12 points (all on three-pointers) in Miami's Game 6 series-clinching win. His playing time decreased in the conference finals against Boston, but Miller made two three-pointers in Miami's Game 1 win.
"If people have to account for us, which is the whole key, and if we're making enough shots that people just can't sit in the lane, it makes it a lot easier for them," Miller said of James, Wade and Bosh.
Spoelstra doesn't look just for the points. Miller has been among the best in plus-minus in the postseason.
"And that's why you can't necessarily define him by his scoring average or numbers," Spoelstra said. "When he's on the court, we've played some of our best basketball, and that's what we always anticipate. … He's had a tremendous impact on our winning."
Miller makes an impact in the community, too. communities He and his wife, Jennifer, donated $200,000 to St. Jude Children's Research Center in Memphis when he was with the Grizzlies and $1 million to start the Mike and Jennifer Miller Endowment Fund at Sanford Children's Hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D., 75 miles east of Miller's hometown of Mitchell, S.D.
During last season's conference finals, his daughter, Jaelyn, was born with four holes in her heart, a condition called ventricular septal defect. She spent time in a Florida hospital and also at Sanford Children's Hospital.
"It worked full circle," Miller said.
The Mike Miller Foundation provides financial support for children in Florida, Tennessee, Minnesota and South Dakota, and the Millers recently hosted a party at their Florida home featuring country singer-songwriter Jerrod Niemann. Proceeds benefited Miller's foundation.
"We realize how blessed we are," Miller said. "It took us a long way to get there, coming from where I came from. Everything we do is aimed at giving kids a chance at an early age."
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