“When you win in a small market, those fans live and die with you” - Reggie Miller talks about the fulfilment of winning with a ‘small market’ team, references LeBron James' title win with Cleveland Cavaliers
Throughout the history of the NBA, there's always been a trend of NBA players being attracted towards the idea of playing in a major market city. It's the reason why so many small market teams have struggled when it comes to winning NBA Championships. That's why teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat have always become popular destinations for players looking for a major city to play in.
The desire for players to leave smaller markets and sign with teams in big cities has always created an uncomfortable advantage for teams in the NBA. Even if a team drafts a player that turns out to be a superstar, there's no guarantee that the player will want to stay with that team if he has the potential to grow his popularity on and off the court in another city. Some players have attempted to change that recurring theme, but up until the last couple of years, the majority have failed. That all started to change when LeBron James was finally able to bring a championship to the city of Cleveland. It was the first time that a "smaller" market organization was able to bring home the biggest award in the NBA. Last year, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was next to do the same after he signed an extension with the Bucks and eventually bringing the city of Milwaukee an NBA championship. In a recent interview with The Athletic, former NBA legend Reggie Miller spoke about how hard it is to win in a small market, as he attempted to do so during his career with the Indiana Pacers.
"People don’t understand — and we’ve seen this when LeBron came back to Cleveland, and now Milwaukee — when small markets win like that, and Indiana is in that category, it’s like winning three or four, it is. We’re not the Lakers, Boston, Chicago. When you win in a small market, those fans live and die with you."
What separated Reggie Miller?
"I’d say my willingness to want the basketball at arguably the worst time of any game."
The Pacers legend lands at No. 47 on #TheAthleticNBA75.
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There's no denying that the former Indiana Pacer is spot on with this point. Reggie Miller spent his entire career with the same organization and was part of a smaller market team when it came to the Indiana Pacers. Miller came close a number of times to finally bringing the Pacers an NBA Championship, but was never able to accomplish the feat. Miller is also spot on with his point about fan bases in these types of cities. Although it's not as glamorous as some of the other "bright light" cities, that doesn't mean that these organizations don't have some of the most loyal fans in the league. Time will tell if more NBA superstars will take on the challenge of trying to make it work with teams in small markets.