Scott Spinelli, then an assistant coach at Texas A&M, had a long day of watching AAU basketball in 2008 in Akron, Ohio.
But a …
Scott Spinelli, then an assistant coach at Texas A&M, had a long day of watching AAU basketball in 2008 in Akron, Ohio. But a coaching friend talked him into watching one more game. “We had just talked about recruiting needs at Texas A&M, and there he was, Khris Middleton,” Spinelli told USA TODAY Sports. “He was long, lanky, and had great skills with a tremendous shooting stroke, and you could see right there in warmups, he stood out to me. “Watching him play that day, I saw how he was impacting the game. One thing that’s never changed about Khris is his desire to win. He makes the right play for his team with the ultimate goal and that is to win. If it means not scoring as many points, so be it.” Or, if it means scoring as many points as necessary, so be it. Middleton scored a playoff career-high 40 points in Milwaukee’s dramatic 109-103 victory over Phoenix in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, tying the series at 2-2. He attempted a playoff career-high 33 shots and made 15, including 3-for-8 on 3-pointers. He was also 7-for-8 from the foul line and made four consecutive free throws with less than 21 seconds left in the game. “I don’t count shots,” Middleton said. “I just try to let the game come to me, the shots that I have to take no matter what, no matter how many times I shoot in a minute, no matter how many times I miss, that’s just the way I play the game. I don’t realize any stats or shots or points really until the end of the game.” The Bucks needed every bit of Middleton’s offense in a game that had Devin Booker scoring 42 points and the Suns leading for most of the second half.
