June 7, 2004 at 11:44:12 ET.

Miller reached for Artest's pass and threw it hard, and the round basketball spun rapidly in the air, leaving a perfect arc and diving into the hoop.

Almost as soon as Miller made his move, the basketball board turned a bloody red and a beep sounded to signal the end of the game.

Whether Miller's shot counts or not is a bit debatable, as the beep went off when he shot. However, Crawford firmly swiped three fingers to the ground, telling the scorekeeper very clearly that three copies worked!

The fans at the Consec Center didn't cheer, neither did the fans of the Pacers in front of the televisions, and even less the Miller fans who were waiting for the outcome of the game.

On the scoreboard, the number 105:99 stabbed everyone's eyes, and the Pistons won two games in a row after seven hard battles, losing three games in a row, successfully eliminated the opponent Pacers, and advanced to the finals again after fifteen years!

Miller stood blankly outside the three-point line, he didn't look at the scoreboard, he didn't look at the fans' expressions, he just looked at the blank basketball board.

For nearly forty years, he has been facing this board, and from the time he was seven years old when he was able to walk without a brace, he stepped on the basketball court with his sister by his side. This step is thirty years, this step, the high-spirited young man has become a calm and indifferent middle-aged man, this step, a life of glory, a life of despair!

"On June 7, 2004, Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pacers played the Pistons at home at the Consec Center. Perhaps it was God's arrangement, fourteen years ago Reggie. Miller played the playoffs for the first time and was eliminated by the Pistons. Now, fourteen years later, his final playoff game was at the hands of the Pistons. In the last game of his career, the then seven-year-old Reggie was Chinese New Year's Eve. Miller had 28 points, six rebounds and four assists, shooting 11-of-16 from the field, 4-of-6 from three-point range, and hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer," said the DJ of the Consec Center in a deep voice.

"In 1987, in the NBA Draft, the Pacers selected Reggie with a 13th round pick. Miller. For basketball fans, Miller is just an average star, and he can't compare to Michael. Jordan, not as good as Magic Johnson, not as good as Big Bird Bird, but for the Pacers, he's all, he's a superstar forever. I was so proud of the choice of Mr. Khalid (the then general manager of the Pacers who insisted on choosing Miller) who brought endless glory to the Pacers!

Since entering the league, this thin and withered young man has never delivered a domineering slam dunk or an elegant and dashing breakthrough, he has just been tirelessly running off the ball, catching the ball, pulling up jump shots, three-point or two-point shots on the court, and just tirelessly performing one miller-times after another. So far, Reggie. Miller made NBA history by making 2,560 three-pointers in his career, and he shot 40% from three-point range! Perhaps, someone will break this record in the future, but he will not be able to surpass Reggie. Miller, in the hearts of Pacers fans, Reggie, you're the only one"

What DJ said later, Miller didn't listen, he silently walked to the midcourt of Consec Center, got down and gently kissed the Pacer logo on the floor.

The 20,000 fans let out a tsunami-like cry and magic, and all of them wore Miller's No. 31 jersey, from the old tight white home jersey 17 years ago to the current blue jersey, all the styles of jerseys worn by Miller in all eras can be found on the spot.

"Reggie, don't go"

"Reggie, we love you"

"Reggie, start all over again"

The staff of the Pacers on the scene handed out the signs prepared in advance to the fans present, and they made two preparations before the game, in fact, these signs of the Pacers have been produced for half a season, and whenever Miller makes a statement of retirement, these signs will appear in the hands of the fans.

“one－more－year！”

“one－more－year！”

“one－more－year！”

The fans screamed hoarsely, repeating this sentence again and again, come back next year, come back next year, but how can we have so many next years?

Miller closed his eyes, placed his right hand on his heart, raised his left hand high, held it slightly in his palm, and raised his index finger, just as he did when he created Miller's moment at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Seeing this posture, all the old fans could no longer hold back the tears that poured in, and burst into tears......

The turmoil has settled the past, and the rivers and lakes laugh and take the cold knife. In the NBA, it is difficult for you to find the graceful style of spring flowers and autumn moons and a hundred turns from the tough guy gang of the Pacers, nor can you wipe a handful of dust on a historical figure, and sigh in the tone of the old master of the Southern Tang Dynasty "The dust is like a dream, and it is always uneven after several ups and downs, and now it has become a cloud of smoke." This team had a bunch of hard-blooded maniacs, and at one point, iron-blooded was the label of the Pacers until Miller came down in 1987.

Reggie. What kind of character is Miller? If you compare the Chinese martial arts world, he is a little red in the Central Plains written by Gu Long, a cold-blooded and crisp Meng Xingsoul, killing the enemy deadly, cutting off with one sword, and there is no lack of heroic heroism in his indifferent killing career. If you want to describe Miller in Chinese style, then you can imagine that on a dark and moonless night, a tall and thin man is covered in gray gauze, dressed in black, holding a cold knife, hiding a hidden weapon in his sleeve, and the dragon hides its head, disappearing without a trace, picking leaves and flying flowers, and raising the head.

He is a pure assassin, a real killer, no matter what kind of enemy he faces, he is a killer move, a move is finished, and the fall is either the opponent or himself, simply sharp!

"The familiar off-ball movement, the cold-blooded and ruthless kill, the unyielding eyes...... These will all become memories, memories forever. Huaben listened to DJ's unbearable choked voice, but there was not much joy in his heart to advance to the finals, only envy and regret for Miller, tonight, a city was crying, not because of failure, but because they lost the son of basketball.

Huaben took off the shirt that covered half a season plus three rounds of playoffs, and the scarlet No. 3 on it was like the blood of a warrior, in fact, this No. 3 was indeed dyed red by the blood of a warrior, just like a warrior like Miller.

He walked up to Miller, hugged the man known as the King of Killers, and asked respectfully, "Can we exchange jerseys?" ”

After the game, Miller no longer had that indifference and contempt on his face, he smiled and nodded, took off his jersey, and exchanged with Huaben while hugging, and the two sweaty men hugged each other.

"Go win the championship, brother, since Michael retired, no team in our East has won the championship!" Miller said with some sadness, "I'm working so hard in the hope of washing away this shame for the East." ”

Waben hugged him vigorously and promised, "I swear to you, Reggie, that we will sweep Los Angeles, and only the Pacers you lead are qualified to fight us for seven games!" The other teams only deserve to be swept by us! ”

Seeing the two hugging each other, the fans at the scene applauded hard, at this moment, basketball transcended the region, beyond the victory and defeat, beyond the meaning of birth, and the glorious sportsmanship appeared on the court.

Under Warburn's leadership, all the Pistons players took off their jerseys, and they did not exchange with Miller, but only used this means to show respect for Miller. Hamilton stared at Miller for a long time, but his slightly trembling body revealed that his heart was not as calm as his expression.

Today was just the end of the Eastern Conference Finals, not a special game for Miller to retire his jersey, so after a brief stop, the Pistons players left the court.

Miller was the last to leave the field, and he couldn't even leave the field, with fans on both sides of the tunnel stretching their arms to stop him, and some young fans even cried. These young Indiana guys, when they first became interested in basketball, they heard about Reggie. Miller's name, when he first stepped on the court, he saw Miller kill all sides in the NBA, and they grew up with Miller.

In the TNT live broadcast room, Smith and Barkley made a summary of the game, and finally, Barkley, who has always liked to play, said a little sadly: "Reggie retired, from today on, the rivers and lakes have become dull, and there is no such pure killer." ”

Back in the locker room, everyone's minds were still immersed in the frantic shouts of the fans at the end of the game, and the kind of fans' admiration for the players deeply shocked them, making everyone look forward to the day when they retire.

"I'll stay in Detroit until I retire." Mirisic muttered.

Rashid sighed and forced a smile, "Hey, guys, what are you guys doing here?" We won, damn it, we're in the finals! ”

It wasn't until Rashid said that the Pistons players came to their senses, Oku and Mirisic hugged each other, Billups threw the wet jersey in Hamilton's face, Prince threw the sneakers to Oku, and the gang started to fight and cheer.

Brown took Warburn to the press conference, and for the Pacers, Carlisle brought Miller, and at this time, everyone wanted to see Miller. For reporters, this is the last time he will interview Miller as a player.

When the press conference began, the pistons who had advanced didn't even have a reporter to talk to, and all the reporters gathered around the pacers, and the reporter from Sports Illustrated said in a regretful tone: "Reggie, God is really unfair, he gave Michael. Jordan had 48 minutes to decide the winner, but he only gave you the last second, if"

Hua Ben interrupted the reporter's words and said coldly: "God did only give Reggie the last second to give him a chance to save the defeat, but he used this second to choke God's throat tightly!" This is something that no one can do, including Michael! Michael is the Lord's warrior, but Reggie is qualified to be God's opponent! ”

(To be continued)