Willie Miller (basketball player)
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| Position | Guard |
|---|---|
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| League | Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) |
| Team | Alaska Aces |
| Born | July 13, 1977 Olongapo, Philippines |
| Nationality | Philippines |
| College | Colegio de San Juan de Letran |
| Draft | 1st overall, 2001 Batang Red Bull |
| Pro career | 1999–present |
| Former teams | Nueva Ecija Patriots (1999-2000) Batang Red Bull (2001-03) Talk 'N Text Phone Pals (2004-06) |
| Awards | NCAA Rookie of the Year (1995), PBA Most Valuable Player (2002, 2006-07), PBA Mythical First Team (2002), PBA Mythical Second Team (2004}, All-Star MVP (2007) |
Willie V. Miller, Jr. (born on July 13, 1977 in Olongapo City, Philippines), better known simply as Willie Miller, is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Alaska Aces in the Philippine Basketball Association.
After an amateur career with the Letran Knights in the NCAA and a short stint with Tanduay in the Philippine Basketball League, Miller joined the Metropolitan Basketball Association for the Nueva Ecija Patriots from 1999-2000. During his tenure in the Metropolitan Basketball Association Miller made it to the MBA First Five in 1999.
He joined the PBA in 2001 and was the top overall pick of the Batang Red Bull Thunder in the draft. In 2002, he was named as the PBA's Most Valuable Player. He later joined the Talk N' Text Phone Pals from 2004-2006 before being traded to Alaska, and again being named Most Valuable Player in the 2006-07 season.
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[edit] Amateur career
Willie Miller played collegiate ball for the Letran Knights in the NCAA and also played for Tanduay in the team's last conference in the amateur commercial league playing alongside Eric Menk, Ren-Ren Ritualo, Chris Cantonjos, Mark Telan and Gerald Francisco, claiming a runner-up finish against Doctor J Rubbing Alcohol.
[edit] Professional career
[edit] Metropolitan Basketball Association
In 1999, Miller turned pro and instead opted to play for the expansion Nueva Ecija Patriots of the MBA. With Miller parading the Patriots, he was ranked second in the league in scoring averaging 23.6 a contest and made it to the MBA First Five. However, the Patriots won only five games in his first season.
Despite another impressive second year with Nueva Ecija, they never made it to the playoffs as the team ranked among the worst teams in the league during the 2000 season.
[edit] Philippine Basketball Association
[edit] Red Bull
In 2001, Miller opted out of the MBA to join the PBA Rookie Draft. Batang Red Bull Thunder, with the top overall pick in the draft, selected Miller as the first pick, despite speculations of possibly choosing Filipino-American John Arigo.
In his first season, Miller was playing the backup role to Jimwell Torion at point guard but was able to contribute solid numbers in his PBA debut. He played a key role in Red Bull's 2001 Commissioners Cup championship upset of the San Miguel Beermen. In Game 5, he made a last-second block on Beermen import Nate Johnson to preserve the Thunder's victory, and a 3-2 series lead.
[edit] 2002: MVP year
Fortunes change 2002, despite playing sparingly with Torion, Junthy Valenzuela and Lordy Tugade, Miller played a huge role for Red Bull. After an impressive performance against the RP-Hapee Training Pool in which he single handedly led Red Bull to an overtime with over the Nationals, Miller performances alongside the impressive play of teammate Davonn Harp led to Red Bull's second PBA title in the 2002 Commissioners Cup.
He continued his play all the way to the All-Filipino Cup almost leading the Thunder to another finals berth. At season's end, he was selected to the PBA Mythical Team and won the PBA Most Valuable Player Award, to only player in league history to win the award with a scoring average below 10 points a contest. Miller beat teammate Harp for the award.
Miller continued to play his usual performances in the 2003, making it to the Mythical Team for the second straight season.
[edit] Talk N' Text Phone Pals
In the 2004 offseason, Miller was traded by Red Bull to the Talk N' Text Phone Pals in a one-sided deal. The transaction paved way for a strong backcourt duo between him and 2003 Rookie of the Year Jimmy Alapag while playing alongside 2003 MVP Asi Taulava and veterans Vic Pablo, Mark Telan and rookie Harvey Carey.
During the 2004-05 PBA season, the Phone Pals played in two of the three finals appearances, with Miller playing big roles for the Phone Pals. However, losses to Barangay Ginebra and San Miguel denied Talk N Text a championship.
However, Miller played big games for the Phone Pals. He was instrumental in Talk N' Text's come-from-behind win over Ginebra in Game 4 of the 2004-05 PBA Philippine Cup finals and in a losing effort scoring 32 points in Game 6.
He was named the 2005 PBA Fiesta Conference Best Player after another strong performance leading Talk N Text to the best record during the tournament.
At season's end, he was named to the Mythical Team joining Alapag on the spot.
[edit] Alaska Aces
Willie boy once again played an all-around performance in the 2005-06 season but did not led the Phone Pals back to the finals of the Fiesta Conference. At the middle of the 2006 Philippine Cup, Miller was traded to the Alaska Aces as part of a big trade with the Phone Pals.
This time, Miller's backcourt partner would be Mike Cortez and with them, Jeffrey Cariaso, Sonny Thoss and Reynel Hugnatan, the Aces took third-place honors during the conference after falling a game short against Purefoods for a finals berth.
In the 2006-07 Philippine Cup, Miller led Alaska in numerous categories for the injury-riddled Aces.
[edit] National Team
Miller was chosen by head coach Chot Reyes to play for the RP Training Pool in 2005. He played well for the Philippines in the FIBA-Asia tournament and participated in the William Jones Cup in Taiwan, when the country finished third. However, Miller played only three games after suffering an injury and was replaced by Denok Miranda.
In 2006, Miller played for the team in a Qatar Invitational tournament along with the two-game exhibition against the Lebanon national basketball team.
He became the MVP for the Fiesta Conference because of his 3-point shooting and defense. They defeated Talk N' Text Phone Pals in Game 7 even though he wasn't able to shoot 2 free throws.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Danny Ildefonso |
PBA Most Valuable Player 2002 |
Succeeded by Asi Taulava |
| Preceded by James Yap |
PBA Most Valuable Player 2006-07 |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Eric Menk |
PBA Fiesta Conference Best Player 2005 Fiesta Conference |
Succeeded by Enrico Villanueva |
| Preceded by Asi Taulava |
PBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player 2007 (w/ Jayjay Helterbrand) |
Succeeded by Peter June Simon |
