The Clippers have enjoyed a couple of days rest in preparation for their weekend matinees, but a tidbit of non-player news trickled out late today. From Marc Stein of ESPN:
Name to keep an eye on: Eric Miller.
I keep hearing, with greater frequency from rival execs and agents, that the sharp Miller — named at the start of the season as the Clippers’ new director of basketball administration — is being groomed for a larger role in the Clips’ decision-making hierarchy.
How large? Miller is the son-in-law of Clippers owner Donald Sterling and is increasingly regarded as the likely eventual successor to Sterling, who bought the franchise in 1981 before its fourth of six seasons in San Diego before relocating to Los Angeles in 1984.
Eric Miller was quietly brought in just after the Madkins hire, casually mentioned along with others returning to the Clippers. Presumably, all the director-level positions operate under the discretion of the VP of Basketball Operations, Gary Sacks. But when parsing out how some of the responsibilities were distributed, it seems Miller’s duties leaned more towards salary cap and database management, analytics and contract negotiations.
Salary cap and contract negotiations in juxtaposition to Stein’s tidbit is interesting, as longtime Clippers president Andy Roeser has handled those functions – from Ron Harper up to Blake Griffin’s recent extension.
With the general manager duties stabilized under Gary Sacks and Gerald Madkins in support, it could be that Eric Miller’s “larger role in the Clips’ decision-making hierarchy” might lie towards the Roeser side of the equation. If Roeser represents Sterling’s interest, and Miller is being groomed to succeed Sterling, then it makes some sense that Miller might be learning and understanding the intricacies of Roeser’s role.
