Dana Hunsinger Benbow

dana.benbow@indystar.com

Reggie Miller, who stuck with the Indiana Pacers all 18 years of his career, never winning an NBA title, unabashedly criticized Kevin Durant on Wednesday for his move to the Golden State Warriors.

In a nutshell, Miller said that Durant sold out, giving up a legacy for a chance at "cheap jewelry" — an NBA championship ring.

Miller, an NBA Hall of Famer, five-time All-Star and now an NBA analyst with TNT, detailed his thoughts in an article he wrote for the Bleacher Report website.

"At the end of the day, what's more important, rings or legacy? The media only cares about rings, and rightfully so," Miller wrote. "We are judged on jewelry, so that's why I can't argue with it. From a personal standpoint, I'm upset that a small market will never recover from it."

Miller goes on to talk about how thankful Indiana fans have been to him for his devotion to the Pacers.

"Durant would have been a god if he stayed in Oklahoma City," Miller writes. "People always say to me, 'I'm so glad you stayed with us' -- that I stayed for 18 years with a small-market (Pacers) team in Indiana."

Doyel: Spineless Kevin Durant move shows plight of Pacers, others

Miller said he sympathizes with Durant's dilemma, having never won a championship. With the Pacers, Miller made it to six Eastern Conference finals and an NBA Finals, but came up short. But Miller wanted to leave a legacy, a superstar committed to the team and state he loved, he said.

"It was the fight to put Indiana on the map that, in my mind, is my greatest accomplishment," Miller said.

Miller also explained why he stayed with the Pacers ("We were in it together"), that he couldn't have celebrated a title with another team the way LeBron James did in Miami and that it would be "more admirable" for Durant to fail to win a title in Oklahoma City than to notch wins with the Warriors.

Miller goes on to talk about the Boston Celtics wanting him to come out of retirement for the 2007-08 season, when the team won a title with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. The Lakers were after Miller at one point, he said.

It's a ... new baby for Reggie Miller

"I couldn't do that, either. And maybe I should have," Miller writes. "But to me, a king should never leave his kingdom."

Follow IndyStar reporter Dana Benbow on Twitter: @DanaBenbow.