mike miller shooting

Sharpshooter Mike Miller tells Northeast Ohio Media Group that he plans to opt into his player option for the 2015-16 season.

(Joshua Gunter, The Plain Dealer)

NEW YORK - His role on the court with the Cleveland Cavaliers may have been reduced significantly, but Mike Miller believes he still has a place on this team and in this league.

"I think I can play as long as they need me to be, to be honest with you," Miller said. "It's a matter of what I want to do with my kids and how I approach it."

This season Miller's numbers and minutes are the lowest he's accumulated throughout his 15-year career: 2.3 points and 14.9 minutes per game. With the logjam Cleveland has at the wing position, he presumably won't get a chance to improve those statistics before the season comes to a close.

At 35 years of age, he has been relegated to a locker room morale booster, an important role for a team with little postseason experience.

Every championship-caliber team has one or two guys who are tasked with keeping spirits high.

Like any fierce competitor, Miller would love to get out on the court and launch some of his patented rainbow threes, but he understands what the team needs right now. Players with that sort of comprehension level tend to have long, prosperous careers.

"Shooting is always a necessity in this league, and keeping guys good in the locker room is sometimes just as important as anything else," he said. "I think some of the qualities I can bring can last for a while."

Which means retirement at the end of the year isn't in the cards.

Miller has a $2.8 million player option for the 2015-16 season. As of now he says his intentions are to pick up that option and become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2016.

"I would say yes. I am coming back, but it's a long year," Miller said. "I'm going to see how this one goes. All I'm focused on is what we do here. We've got 25 games here and then a playoff run. We'll see how that goes. Where I'm at now, I've been blessed to do 15 years. It's a year-by-year basis. I love what I'm doing."

The Cavaliers have won 16 of their last 18 games, and even though Miller hasn't seen much action in that span, he has contributed tremendously.

"You can't measure what he brings to the table," LeBron James said. "He's a proven winner with no agenda. He wants to see his team succeed and he'll do whatever it takes to make that happen. I'm glad he's here."