Reggie Miller, Indiana Pacers legend, NBA analyst for TNT and Olympic athlete, yesterday shared his thoughts about the NBA’s upcoming, post-lockout, 66-game season.
Former Olympian and seasoned broadcaster Summer Sanders interviewed Miller Dec. 19 as part of her “Countdown to London” series.
They discussed Miller’s participation in the 1996 Olympics and then quickly turned to the NBA and its opening tipoff on December 25.
Miller answered questions from Sanders and the online audience via Spreecast, a free social video platform that lets people broadcast together and create shared experiences.
In a live interactive interview, available to watch here, Miller shared his predictions for the highly anticipated NBA season including:
· 33:13: An NBA final showdown between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Miami Heat. He discussed the style of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook at Oklahoma, and said they have the potential to go up against LeBron James and Dwayne Wade in the finals.
· 27:56: Minnesota Timberwolves’ Derrick Williams is his pick for Rookie of the Year.
· 29:03 and 33:13: The short, intense schedule will offer fewer breaks between games, which could wear on veteran players. With games scheduled 4 out of 5 days, or 5 out of 6, it will be interesting to see how athletes perform.
During the 45-minute Spreecast with Sanders, Miller noted his famous trash-talking encounters with Spike Lee while playing against the New York Knicks (25:22) and his loyalty to playing for the Indiana Pacers his entire career (11:08).
He also shared his favorite career moments (22:17), his love of the fourth-quarter pressure (20:35) and the differences between the Olympics and the NBA (36:18).
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