MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Grizzlies guard Mike Miller won the NBA's Sixth Man Award Friday after making the transition from starter to key reserve.
Miller led the NBA in scoring off the bench this season, averaging 13.7 points. He ranked second in scoring for the Grizzlies and was second in rebounding with a 5.4 average. He also tied for third in assists.
Miller started last year but had no problem playing a backup role as the team adjusted to roster changes, Grizzlies president Jerry West said.
"His work ethic is second to none," West said. "I've never seen a player work harder in my life."
Miller, in his sixth season with the NBA and rookie of the year in 2001, is happy with his new assignment.
"Mostly it's coming in to make an impact and when you leave the game you make sure you put your print on the game," he said.
The Grizzlies, 0-2 in their playoff series with Dallas, host the Mavericks in Game 3 today.
Miller came off the bench in 65 of his 74 games in the regular season, scoring in double figures 54 times. He scored 20 or more points 16 times and 30 or more twice. He had a career-high 41 points against Denver in March.
The award is a first for the Grizzlies franchise.
"It just goes to show that we had a good year as a team," Miller said. "Most times, if you look at the list, all sixth men are part of winning teams."
West shook up the roster in the offseason. He brought in Eddie Jones, Bobby Jackson and Damon Stoudamire, while Jason Williams, James Posey, Stromile Swift and Bonzi Wells moved on. Chucky Atkins joined the Grizzlies when Stoudamire left with a season-ending injury.
Coach Mike Fratello said he talked with Miller early in the season about needing him to play a new role because of the changes.
"(He said) whatever's best for the team is fine with me," Fratello said. "Not many people are that willing to give of themselves to help a team."
EX-WOLVES OWNER DIES: Harvey Ratner, one of the two businessmen who brought the NBA back to Minnesota, died early Friday after a yearlong bout with cancer. He was 79. Ratner owned the Minnesota Timberwolves with partner Marv Wolfenson until selling the team in 1994. He died at his St. Louis Park home, son Mark said.
Ratner and Wolfenson were both born and raised on the north side of Minneapolis. They became known as "Harv and Marv," working together for nearly five decades while managing their collection of apartment complexes and health and fitness facilities.
The philanthropic Ratner's proudest accomplishment, as he recently told one of his sons, was the Timberwolves, who marked the NBA's return after an absence that began when the Minneapolis Lakers moved to Los Angeles in 1960.
One of four expansion franchises spawned by the league in 1987, the Wolves were bought for $32.5 million and began playing in the Metrodome in 1989. The following season, they went to the other end of downtown into a new arena, Target Center, which was funded by Ratner and Wolfenson.
They complemented each other well: Ratner was the cautious sidekick with the enduring sense of humor while Wolfenson was the aggressive risk-taker.
Ratner was notably anxious when he, Wolfenson and their attorney, Bob Stein, traveled to the NBA governors meeting in Phoenix in 1986 to make their formal proposal for the club.
"He told his friends in particular, and other people, too, that he would be happy if they got the team and happier if they didn't," Mark Ratner said. "He was nervous about owning such a big and public enterprise."
Their ownership was ultimately unsuccessful, ending in debt after five mostly miserable seasons on the court. Minnesota went 105-305 during that time and the franchise was sold to a group of investors in New Orleans in May 1994. The league blocked the sale a month later.