There are certain moments in sports history that will never be erased. One is the legacy of Reggie Miller. The guy was an incredible athlete, a stone-cold shot maker, and an all around great man. ESPN recently aired in their 30 for 30 series the film “Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. the New York Knicks”. This film documents one of the greatest athletes in NBA history, Reggie Miller, and his rivalry with the New York Knicks throughout his career. The film highlights one of the greatest moments in NBA history, it was the 1995 Playoffs, and with Reggie Miller and his Indiana Pacers down 105-99 in Game 1 to the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden with only moments to go, Spike Lee and Knicks fans everywhere we sure the game was theirs. But then Reggie Miller went off and scored 8 points in 8.9 seconds to win the game, stunning the entire Knicks team, and their home crowd fans. With 18.7 seconds remaining in Game 1, Miller drained a three-pointer. He then stole the inbound pass, took it beyond the arc and drained another three. The Knicks came up short in the ensuing possession, and Miller got the rebound, was fouled and made both his free-throws, for 8 points. The Knicks had a chance to tie or win the game, but didn’t get a shot off. The Pacers won that series in 7 games, and went on to lose to the Orlando Magic in the conference finals, also taking it to 7 games.
This is a moment detested by Knick fans, revered by Pacer fans, and celebrated by basketball fans everywhere. Reggie’s number 31 has been retired at Conseco Fieldhouse. He now is an NBA announcer on TNT.
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