Talkin’ ‘trash’
As long as he’s playing like that, C.J. Miles says he deserves to have his minutes cut
ATLANTA — C.J. Miles isn’t particularly happy with where his game is right now.
The 30-year-old knockdown shooter was brought here and earns the money he does because of his ability to attempt and make three- pointers at a higher rate than most.
He has had games of late where he has done that, but for every good night there are usually two that don’t go so well. That’s been going on for about a month and a half now. A 43% three-point shooter a year ago, Miles began the year with that kind of success through November, but has seen that number drop to 36% in December and just 34% in January. Those percentages might be OK for some players, but not someone whose game is built around that particular shot.
That drop has coincided with a decline in his minutes and while Miles would love to have more minutes, he’s not about to complain because he’s not producing to his abilities.
“You want to play more? Then you play better,” Miles says matter-of-factly. “That is why you never hear me complain about me going 1-for-whatever and then playing 15 minutes ... because I was trash.”
“I don’t know any other way to put it,” Miles said. “You play well, you play more and that has been the case. Two games ago, I played 27 minutes because I played well. The next night, I played 25 because I played well. It should be based on that. You want to win games, put the people who give you the best chance to win on the floor. Plain and simple, that’s every single night.”
With 12 years in the league, Miles has a level of maturity in a sport that is increasingly reliant on young players, which is somewhat uncommon. But in Miles’ view, it’s nothing more than accepting your situation for what it is.
“You keep playing like crap, you can move any time,” Miles said when asked about his fluctuating minutes. “If you are supposed to make shots and you don’t make shots, you deserve to be on the bench. I deserve to play 15 minutes if I’m not doing my job. I’m never going to complain if I’m not doing my job about not being on the floor. That isn’t right as a basketball player. That shouldn’t be your mindset. If you are not doing what you are supposed to do you should be able to comprehend that as a grown up, as a basketball player, anything. You should be able to figure that out.”
All of that said, Miles at least sees a light at the end of the tunnel.
A big reason his shooting started to slip in the first place was a series of injury and life changes and then an out-ofnowhere setback all resulting from one uncommonly stubborn wisdom tooth.
A shoulder injury and even the arrival of daughter Ava in terms of knocking work and life balance out of whack were comparatively small blips in a busy month of December. The shoulder healed relatively quickly and he has adapted to all that raising a child entails and how it changes everything in your life.
The tooth was another matter. Multiple surgeries — he has one more next week to ensure the broken tooth lodged deep in his jaw can be removed in the offseason — created all kinds of problems for Miles.
Initially after the surgery, there was an inability to consume solid food. The lack of nourishment and the need to protect the sensitive area in his mouth curtailed any real workout time. Then there were the headaches and the sleep loss and all together it managed to take away the consistency of his three-balls.
Almost three weeks since all that came to a head, Miles is back in a manageable rhythm. The headaches are gone, he’s back on both a regular diet and into his regular workout routine. The area along his jawline remains somewhat sensitive, but it’s more annoying than painful. Even the medication he was on has just about run its course.
Slowly, but surely, life is returning to normal and he now he finds himself fighting the urge to overdo things as far as getting back to where he wants to be.
“You’ve gotta try to find a balance where you still have everything for the game,” he said. “You work so hard and obsess over it so much and do so much it, becomes like a mental block more than anything else. You keep telling yourself you are not (making shots) because you are not doing enough which isn’t always the problem. You’ve just got to settle back into the game and do things the right way. Right now I’m just searching.”
Miles though is getting there. You can see it on the court and in his demeanour.
A tough time now might even be beneficial in the long run when say his team needs him most in April and May.
I don’t know any other way to put it. You play well, you play more. Raptors’ C.J. Miles