INDIANAPOLIS– Reggie Miller, the Indiana Pacers’ all-time leading scorer who played all 18 of his NBA seasons with the team, was named Monday to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame during a press conference in New Orleans, La.
Miller scored 25,279 points in his career and up until last season, was the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-point field goals made with 2,560. He is also regarded as one of basketball’s all-time great clutch shooters, particularly during the playoffs where his heroics with the Pacers have been well-documented, including eight points in 8.9 seconds during a playoff game against the New York Knicks. He is in the Pacers’ top 10 in 13 positive statistical categories. He is a five-time NBA All-Star.
“It’s a humbling experience, obviously,” Miller said during the press conference. “To be part of this exclusive club is special. It’s a proud day for me. It’s special for me. I get a chance to join Cheryl, the first brother-sister act in the Hall of Fame. She was a role model.”
Miller joins former Pacers player Mel Daniels in this year’s class. Daniels earlier this year was voted in by the Hall’s ABA committee. “I’m honored because I’m the second Indiana Pacer behind the No. 1 Pacer,” said Miller.
“We’re very happy as an organization to have one of our own make the Hall of Fame,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “Reggie’s career speaks for itself, but he ranks at the top with any player at making end-of-game shots. I was fortunate enough to see it first-hand as a coach and his ability and leadership helped drive this franchise to another level. I know he’s happy to be put in a class with all of the elite players. It’s a great honor.”
“He’s a Hall of Fame player, flat-out,” said former Pacers President Donnie Walsh, who drafted Miller out of UCLA with the team’s first-round pick (11th overall) in the 1987 NBA Draft. “He has had a Hall of Fame career and I’m very happy for him. I thought he was going to be a very good player, but what you couldn’t predict was Reggie became a great player because he could rise to the occasion and hit shots in the most crucial times of games. He was able to elevate everyone around him because of how hard he worked and how he could win the game at the end. It’s a great day for the Pacers that they are getting two guys into the Hall of Fame.”
“It’s much deserved and I’m thrilled for him,” said Pacers’ Owner Herb Simon. “It makes us all proud of what he accomplished for the Pacers.”