Reggie Miller: Analyst of the Year

… if only because he is the first hoops talking head to draw an identical comparison of Chris Paul’s game to ours…. our comparison, that is. We’ve grown weary of the Chris Paul/Isiah Thomas comparisons. It has been intellectual laziness on par with those we’ve heard to Dirk Nowitki’s game early in his career to that of Larry Bird’s. Yeah, we get it. Two tall, blond white guys with terrible English that can shoot. Other than that, the two’s game had absolutely nothing in common with one another.


And though Chris Paul’s nightly 20/10 ability to score and deal assists was going to draw the inevitable Thomas parallels, the two have very different styles. Paul is much more physical than Thomas was… where Thomas’ forays to the hoop would result in leaners or fade-aways, Paul’s superior upper body strength allows him to use his body to shield his shooting hand from his defender thus drawing contact and fouls. Also, for as spectacular as the alley-oop feeds to Tyson Chandler are, there is an icy efficiency to his game that is in stark contrast to the purposeful showmanship of Thomas’ game.

During last night’s Hornets defeat of the Spurs, Miller addressed Chris Paul’s game and acknowledged the Thomas comparison only to set up the “yeah, but..” moment of truth. Because of their similar physical styles, explosiveness and efficiency, Miller thought Paul’s game was more comparable to this guy’s….

… point guard for the Phoenix Suns back in the 80s and 90s, Kevin Johnson. Props to Miller for breaking out of the ABC/ESPN/TNT NBA echo chamber and seeing and calling it like it really is.