Miles’ role has evolved since he arrived

The pairing of C.J. Miles and the Toronto Raptors has yet to go quite as planned, but things are progressing.

The initial thinking when he signed as a free agent in July was that he would either start or be the team’s high-scoring sixth man.

But here we are, three quarters through Year 1 and no fewer than eight Raptors are averaging more minutes per game than Miles, who has not played this sparingly since he was a 20-year-old in Utah a decade ago.

The deepest roster in franchise history and defensive concerns (Miles guards non-behemoth power forwards far better than quicker swingmen) have prompted the minutes restrictions, but recently, Miles has been playing more and he has been red-hot from outside after finally getting into a groove following some serious dental surgery back in December.

One of the things that had held the partnership back had been an inability to get Miles looks from his most dangerous areas, the corners. Only two players hit more corner threepointers than Miles last season and he connected on just shy of half of those attempts, which also ranked among the NBA’s leaders.

In Toronto’s new-look offence, Miles is getting far fewer chances a night from the corners compared to in his final Pacers campaign.

As the primary threat off of the bench, opponents simply won’t let Miles operate where he wants to be.

“The way he’s been shooting, teams understand that, they’re not letting him (go there),” point guard Fred VanVleet told Postmedia.

“We can get him some, but he can be a decoy too and get guys open looks. With the way we are moving, he’s getting a lot above the break, but obviously if we can get him there in the corners, he’s pretty lights out.”

That remains true. Miles has hit 47% of his corner looks, though he is attempting far more from other areas of the floor than he has in the past.

Miles says corner threes are easier for him because they come from a closer distance than other outside attempts, meaning he can release them quicker and easier, without needing to put his legs into them as much.

“Everybody’s got their goto-shot and I guess that’s mine. I can shoot those, hand in the face because I’ve repped them so many times,” he says.

Miles is trying to accentuate the positives. He has been forced to expand his game, putting the ball on the floor more, attacking the hoop and becoming a threat from all over.

“I’ve had to be more active, I’ve had to get in different spots and not just stand so people can stay hugged to my hip,” he had said when the corner attempts were coming even less frequently than they have been recently.

“We’re searching them out, trying to find ways to get them too because those are easy shots for me, but I’ve been getting them everywhere else.”

I can shoot those, hand in the face because I’ve repped them so many times

Raptors’ C.J. Miles