Edward Miles Jr. (born July 5, 1940) is a retired American basketball player. His shooting ability was such, that he was known as "The Man With the Golden Arm".
Miles was born on July 5, 1940, in North Little Rock, Arkansas.[1] He was a graduate of Scipio A. Jones High School, in North Little Rock. He averaged 18, 25, 30 and 32 points per game, respectively, in his four years as a varsity high school player, and he led Jones to four state championships.[2] In 1959, he led the team to the finals of the national black high school tournament.[3]
Miles was a two-time All American in high school,[4] four-time All-State selection,[5] and was recruited by 50 colleges. He chose to attend Seattle University because of his admiration for its alumnus Elgin Baylor (1958), and because Baylor had called Miles to recruit him to Seattle.[2]
College
Miles was nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Arm" by Seattle's sports information director Bill Sears, because of his shooting prowess.[2] He played three varsity seasons with Seattle and ranked seventh in the nation in scoring during his senior year (1962–63), with a 25.8 points per game average.[6][7] He led his team in scoring all three years, and remains Seattle's third leading scorer with a 23.1 average, Baylor being number one at 31.1.[2][4]
Seattle went to the NCAA Tournament all three years Miles played, with a 57–22 record, losing in close games all three times; by two points in one game, and four points in two other games, including one in overtime.[2][8] As a senior, Miles was All-Coast and third-team AP (Associated Press) and United Press International (UPI) All-America.[8]
As a Pistons' rookie, Miles only played 13.5 minutes a game and averaged 5.4 points per game.[10] His skill set was a poor match for coach Charley Wolff's offensive scheme. His play and numbers improved significantly when Wolff was fired in November 1964, and 24-year old Pistons' forward Dave DeBusschere was named head coach; the youngest in NBA history. Miles's best years came in Detroit ensured, when he averaged 19.6, 17.6 and 18.5 points per game in consecutive seasons from 1965-1968.[1][5][11] He represented the Pistons at the 1966 NBA All-Star Game, scoring 17 points, high on the West team.[2][12] Although his scoring average fell after the 1967-68 season, he never averaged less than 13.3 points per game for the Pistons after his rookie season.[1]
Baltimore Bullets and New York Knicks
He was traded from the Pistons to the Bullets for Bob Quick on February 1, 1970, in a transaction that also involved both teams exchanging selections in the subsequent draft with Baltimore receiving a fourth-round pick (54th overall–Bill Stricker) and Detroit a second-rounder (32nd overall–Ken Warzynski).[13][14] He was waived by the Bullets after the 1970-71 season, and the Knicks acquired him with two of their guards (Mike Riordan/broken wrist and Walt Frazier/hospitalization) unavailable to play.[9] He would play in 42 games, averaging only 4.7 minutes a game.[1]
In 1971, he was on the Baltimore Bullets team that defeated the New York Knicks 4–3 to win the Eastern Conference Finals, averaging nearly 10 points a game for the season coming off the bench.[15] He did not play in those seven games, or the 1971 playoffs, because of the Achilles injury; but ironically played in nine playoff games for the Knicks in 1972.[1]
Miles averaged 13.4 points per game in his NBA career.[1] He found the defense of Hall of Fame guard Lenny Wilkens particularly difficult.[5][16]
Coaching
Since retiring as a player, Miles has served as a coach at the college and high school levels, and has worked as a private basketball trainer.[4][8]
Personal life
Miles worked as an accountant for the government and as a financial services agent.[8] As of 2024, he has been married for 64 years to Carolyn Miles, with five children and six grandchildren.[2]
Honors
Miles was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1989.[17] In 2011, he was inducted into the Seattle University Athletics Hall of Fame.[4][18] He received the Seattle University Alumni Award in 2020.[4]
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