Brad Miller = Basketball hypochondriac

[PurpleHaze]

I know this subject has been discussed and analyzed before, but I’m now convinced more than ever that Brad Miller is a basketball hypochondriac.

He gets flustered so damn easily, letting even the most minor pressure on the court affect his performance. Last night against Denver I noticed that just before he missed one of his critical free throws at the end of the game he sort of flinched, rolled his eyes, and made what looked like a little sarcastic comment because a couple of Nuggets players were shifting through the paint to opposite sides of the lane in front of him. Instead of concentrating and ignoring it, he let them freak him out resulting in two clanged free throws.

The guy acts and looks like a wimp with his endless whining and sourpuss expression out there. When something negative happens to Brad Miller, instead of totally blocking it out and just doing his vital job he lets it dog him, often missing-in-action from follow on plays until he regains composure. We hear how he’s this big bad macho hunter, but on the basketball court he often acts more like the hunted game. I don’t blame him entirely for the Denver debacle, but he was hugely responsible. Beno had a hand in it with his two big misses from the line at the end. The Kings inability to snatch a defensive rebound was a major factor. One of the worst plays was earlier when Mikki Moore got a flying dunk and proceeded to spend a few ridiculous seconds congratulating himself to the crowd while Denver was merrily breaking in transition for a Carmelo Christmas present slam at the other end. Horrible choke down the stretch by the Kings, I mean certain members of the Kings.

Coach Reggie should burn the game tape because showing all the good things his team did in the first three quarters is meaningless. Bring on Boston for Act II of this four game home stand. GO KINGS!!

 

[Fear the Putin]

well thats nothing new
Hes has gotten more and more squirmy over the years. It seems like he doesnt even like contact at times. When he was Indiana, he was the guy who gave and endured the most contact, which is why Kings fans were ecstatic about the pickup. Now, you see him fling his hands up when someone is simply boxing out.

Also, Mikki needs to stop thinking hes such a hardass with those firebird signals, or whatever he does while opening his mouth like a T-Rex.

 

[nebs]

well thats nothing new
Hes has gotten more and more squirmy over the years. It seems like he doesnt even like contact at times. When he was Indiana, he was the guy who gave and endured the most contact, which is why Kings fans were ecstatic about the pickup. Now, you see him fling his hands up when someone is simply boxing out.

Also, Mikki needs to stop thinking hes such a hardass with those firebird signals, or whatever he does while opening his mouth like a T-Rex.

I agree. Mikki is annoying with that. It's like he's throwing the the double 3's because that's his number or something? Or maybe it is some firebird signal.

Brad really does whine a lot out there. It's really annoying when both he and Bibby are doing it all game.

 

[GoSACtown]

i love mikki's intensity, i dont know what you guys are talking about

 

[PurpleHaze]

The comments and play referred were not about his great intensity. Maybe you missed "that play."

 

[Glenn]

The comments and play referred were not about his great intensity. Maybe you missed "that play."

Mikki can get a bit over the top but this is also the same group of people who think that the Kings lack of enthusiasm is a sign of "bad chemistry."

 

[Kingster]

Yep. Brad isn't exactly the epitome of mental toughness. If Theus can change that, it will be a minor miracle...

 

[PurpleHaze]

Mikki can get a bit over the top but this is also the same group of people who think that the Kings lack of enthusiasm is a sign of "bad chemistry."

And Mikki is the best towel waver we've probably ever had from the bench. I just questioned his antics in the middle of a game with the clock running that resulted in GIVING the other team an easy break-away basket

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

And Mikki is the best towel waver we've probably ever had from the bench. I just questioned his antics in the middle of a game with the clock running that resulted in GIVING the other team an easy break-away basket

This guy would like a word with you.

 

[PurpleHaze]

This guy would like a word with you.

Well, it's a tie... I always thought Mikki should start over K9 just based on his towel waving intensity alone

 

[VF21]

I know this subject has been discussed and analyzed before, but I’m now convinced more than ever that Brad Miller is a basketball hypochondriac.

He gets flustered so damn easily, letting even the most minor pressure on the court affect his performance. Last night against Denver I noticed that just before he missed one of his critical free throws at the end of the game he sort of flinched, rolled his eyes, and made what looked like a little sarcastic comment because a couple of Nuggets players were shifting through the paint to opposite sides of the lane in front of him. Instead of concentrating and ignoring it, he let them freak him out resulting in two clanged free throws.

The guy acts and looks like a wimp with his endless whining and sourpuss expression out there. When something negative happens to Brad Miller, instead of totally blocking it out and just doing his vital job he lets it dog him, often missing-in-action from follow on plays until he regains composure. We hear how he’s this big bad macho hunter, but on the basketball court he often acts more like the hunted game. I don’t blame him entirely for the Denver debacle, but he was hugely responsible. Beno had a hand in it with his two big misses from the line at the end. The Kings inability to snatch a defensive rebound was a major factor. One of the worst plays was earlier when Mikki Moore got a flying dunk and proceeded to spend a few ridiculous seconds congratulating himself to the crowd while Denver was merrily breaking in transition for a Carmelo Christmas present slam at the other end. Horrible choke down the stretch by the Kings, I mean certain members of the Kings.

Coach Reggie should burn the game tape because showing all the good things his team did in the first three quarters is meaningless. Bring on Boston for Act II of this four game home stand. GO KINGS!!

Miller wasn't hugely responsible for the Nuggets loss. The whole team had a hand. Even Artest, who totally dominated the stats made some key errors.

Your assessment of Brad Miller is, IMHO, off-base and pretty insulting. My assessment of that particular play was his frustration with the game delay tactics being used by the Nuggets. Perceptions differ, I suppose.

 

[PurpleHaze]

Miller wasn't hugely responsible for the Nuggets loss. The whole team had a hand. Even Artest, who totally dominated the stats made some key errors.

Your assessment of Brad Miller is, IMHO, off-base and pretty insulting. My assessment of that particular play was his frustration with the game delay tactics being used by the Nuggets. Perceptions differ, I suppose.

I started off by saying that Brad's "problem" has been discussed here a lot - obviously it's something that he lets affect his performance. Others chimed in and agreed. If the Denver game had ended after three quarters no real complaints. I've been accused here before of being a homer, but not a blind homer. Hopefully, Brad doesn't have virgin ears or needs a definition of hypochondriac if he ever reads this stuff.

 

[KingsCitizen]

Brad did his own 22pts 8rebs 4asts 3stls 1blk for that night yet you guys still care to blame this guy who clearly has recovered some good skills from last year's slump. If Brad is such a whiner, so are you! Look at the team again! were just overachieving with the current lineup. It's christmas guys! Give some love!

 

[nebs]

Brad did his own 22pts 8rebs 4asts 3stls 1blk for that night yet you guys still care to blame this guy who clearly has recovered some good skills from last year's slump. If Brad is such a whiner, so are you! Look at the team again! were just overachieving with the current lineup. It's christmas guys! Give some love!

Honestly though.. you've never thought to yourself.. geeez Brad stop complaining and get over it?

I like Brad but what's wrong with saying that that is annoying to me when he or anyone does it regularly?

 

[Bricklayer]

Honestly though.. you've never thought to yourself.. geeez Brad stop complaining and get over it?

I have.

Brad can be a complete and utter wimp out there. I find myself muttering, or yelling, depending on the severity of the whining "Shut the bleep up Brad!" multiple times a game. We even gave it a name on this board a few years ago: Bitter Brad Face. Just cannot hold his water. The smallest thing goes wrong, he looks like he's going to cry, and starts basically whining, because its certainly not barking, its pretty much whining, at the refs, shaking his head, throwing his arms around, losing focus. Anything else goes wrong before he's recovered, its almost a surefire stupid frustration foul, or technical foul. And the bad part is he can't or won't turn it off. Lots of guys complain on one call or whatnot, but with Brad its a spiral. Once he feels he's been "cheated", which remarkably seems to happen every single game, he can't let it go and it tears down his whole game. His oncourt demeanor and mental toughness leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to vis a vis the refs.

Its nonsensical to try to poo poo this complaint. Its one of Brad's defining characteristics in the NBA. Part of the package. And its basically impossible to deny except on a "we see no faults with our players" level.

All of that said, I did not notice it last night with those FTs. Maybe it was there, maybe not. I just did not make that connection myself while watching it.

 

[VF21]

I don't know if you were referring to me or not but I was not "poo poo"ing the complaint so much as stating that I think the OP's interpretation of Brad's facial expression at a specific point last night was erroneous.

I think we've all screamed at one time or another about the pouty face. I certainly have. To be fair, however, I've seen much less of it this year.

 

[Bricklayer]

I don't know if you were referring to me or not but I was not "poo poo"ing the complaint so much as stating that I think the OP's interpretation of Brad's facial expression at a specific point last night was erroneous.

I think we've all screamed at one time or another about the pouty face. I certainly have. To be fair, however, I've seen much less of it this year.

If you were referring to the one incident (missed FTs) then I withdraw the poo pooing comment. I did not notice it either, although I think I was still getting over the shock of our 86% FT shooting PG having choked off two FTs and opened the door, and may not have been fully paying attention.

 

[Fear the Putin]

Brad did his own 22pts 8rebs 4asts 3stls 1blk for that night yet you guys still care to blame this guy who clearly has recovered some good skills from last year's slump. If Brad is such a whiner, so are you! Look at the team again! were just overachieving with the current lineup. It's christmas guys! Give some love!

we are not diminishing his game, hell...PurpleHaze clearly said that everyone had a hand in the loss, which is completely true.

It's his mental state of mind that can put easy points on the board for the opposing team. He loses cool from the simplest of antics. Such as the Mavericks incident in preseason. Nick Fazekas got tangled with Brad and he threw the most ridiculous fit by knocking down the guy who bumped in him, being poor Devin Harris....sure Hollywood was involved, but it was an uncalled for shove nonetheless.

getting tangled up, loose balls scirmishes, and boxing out are all part of the game yet Brad seems to feel like everyone is getting TOO rough with him when that happens.

Once again, no one is bashing his game. He is a great player and extremely talented. But, there is no reason why fans cant POINT OUT a simple characteristic that sends his game into a freefall at times and even the team as well.

 

[Fresno King]

A 3-2 road trip and everyone's happy.

A tough loss right after that, and Miller's a wimp.

This board cracks me up sometimes.

 

[VF21]

If you were referring to the one incident (missed FTs) then I withdraw the poo pooing comment. I did not notice it either, although I think I was still getting over the shock of our 86% FT shooting PG having choked off two FTs and opened the door, and may not have been fully paying attention.

Yep, it was that one incident. I noticed the facial expression and the shrugging and comments. I just totally disagree with the OP as to their interpretation.

 

[Fear the Putin]

I don't know if you were referring to me or not but I was not "poo poo"ing the complaint so much as stating that I think the OP's interpretation of Brad's facial expression at a specific point last night was erroneous.

I think we've all screamed at one time or another about the pouty face. I certainly have. To be fair, however, I've seen much less of it this year.

as worthless as it may have looked, the subconscious expression was there. Compare last night's late game free throw shooting to a regular say...second quarter free throw shooting Brad. The difference is vast.

I usually can care less about a player's facial expression unless its for amusement purposes ala Rasheed, varejao/Ginobli/Fisher/reggie evans flopping, but it was more than obvious that Brad was nervous as hell and let the smallest disturbance affect him.

 

[VF21]

as worthless as it may have looked, the subconscious expression was there. Compare last night's late game free throw shooting to a regular say...second quarter free throw shooting Brad. The difference is vast.

I usually can care less about a player's facial expression unless its for amusement purposes ala Rasheed, varejao/Ginobli/Fisher/reggie evans flopping, but it was more than obvious that Brad was nervous as hell and let the smallest disturbance affect him.

Whatever.

People around here tend to get waaaaaaaaaaay too involved in trying to interpret body language, nuances of blinking, etc.

 

[Bricklayer]

A 3-2 road trip and everyone's happy.

A tough loss right after that, and Miller's a wimp.

This board cracks me up sometimes.

While I might have a tendency to agree about the manic/depressive board dynamics in general, Brad was a wimp before, during, and after said tough loss. Been that way forever. Will always be that way. Isn't going to change now. The choked FTs of course inspired the thread, but the underlying mental fragility could be a topic of conversation almost nightly, win, lose, or draw. I don't think anybody just suddenly realized last night that Brad's near nightly meltdowns might just indicate a bit of a mental toughness problem.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

A 3-2 road trip and everyone's happy.

A tough loss right after that, and Miller's a wimp.

This board cracks me up sometimes.

Let's not put words in people's mouths...