Exclusive Players Tribune: "What the Hell Happened to Darius Miles"

It's like the entire league is unaware of what D Groin wants to do on offense and guards him wrong. They give him space up top when he only wants to do one of two things: pass or shoot a 3 from as straight on as possible. He absolutely does not want to drive, and if he does, his first second and third option is to pass (usually a lob), making him a minimal threat as a shooter. He doesn't even finish particularly well at the rim.

Play him tight at the arc and stay up on slashers if he does go around you. Pretty simple.

 

I remember watching his rehab videos on the team's site in freshman year of high school bragging to my friends he'd be back and 100%, oops.

 

Nice piece. Dude was the most talented player on that mid 2000's Blazer team, just didn't want it badly enough. Glad to see he's doing better and still buddies with Qrich.

 

i think the part that ultimately hurt DM the most was missing out on the structure and growth phase of a couple of years of college life and ball.

i get the whole money lure thing, but im thinking development as a person and player.

I always liked DM and im glad to see that he's in a good place these days.

 

Now that was a DAMN GOOD READ.

 

Only one thing in Mile's life is relevant to me - his fake comeback from injury retirement just to screw the Blazers.

Unless he is living in a cardboard box under a freeway and wasting away from drugs and assorted vile diseases, I don't want to hear about him.

 

Another reason to hate Danny Ainge and (ultimately, Chris Wallace/Jerry West). It's the Celtics and Grizz who were most salty about missing out on Oden/Durant in the lottery and did whatever they could to screw us over.

 

Miles was a lazy punk in Portland. Maybe he turned his life around but after he got paid, he got lazy. Calling Mo Cheeks an N-Bomb in practice. Smelling like Vodka. He would walk the offense when he got pouty.

 

Seconded.

 

Don't know if you read the article but I wasn't aware that he was dealing with his sick mom while in Portland. That is rough for anyone.

 

Throwing down all those dunks as hard as he could a la Kemp most likely contributed to his knee issues and shortened his career. He would have been better off learning how to shoot. But it sounds like he was too busy being Hollywood and skating by on his natural gifts.

 

Holy shit...

 

Lebron dunks really hard too.

 

I finally got some time to check this out. Great post Chris! Man, that was a great article. Shaq. Lmao.... Thanks much!

 

I think a more accurate description would be, his only parent dying.

 

So let me get this straight.... if you were a player and a team called you up and offered you money, you wouldn't take it because it might screw your old team?

It wasn't Miles fault. The Grizzlies saw an opportunity to screw us out of some cap space and they took it. It was the Grizzlies that were being scummy by playing him when he never should have been out on the floor in his condition, but they wanted to screw us over.

Miles was just getting paid. He was a young guy that was hoping he could still play and he took his last chance at the league. Same with Roy.

I knew Darius when he was with the team. He was a really nice guy. I met his mother. She was a sweetheart. I have nothing but good things to say about both of them.