Who is Darius Miles?

National Basketball Association general managers have long favored lanky combo forwards with skill sets that sometimes escape definition. Guys like Shawn Marion and Tracy McGrady can do a little bit of everything, and that elusive mix of talent, athleticism and size often has otherwise intelligent GMs chasing vapor.

Since his rookie year in the 2000-01 season, Darius Miles has been that sort of tease, the guy that can go off for 45 points one night and mail in a 4-14 shooting night the next.

Of course, Miles is little more than a painful, and thankfully fading, memory for many Blazers fans these days. The last time he suited up for Portland was in April 2006. Microfracture knee surgery followed, a much more serious version of the kind Greg Oden just endured.

Now, after more than a year of rehab, it seems as if Miles will play sometime this season. He is one of the last remnants of a different era, but the real question is what Miles, at age 25, has left in the tank.

Here are three good reasons why Miles deserves a second chance in Rip City.

First

He’s a veteran. Miles has seen action in 412 games, starting for 190 of them. And, he had shown significant improvement while in Portland, with his scoring average rising in each of his first three years with the Blazers.

Perhaps most promising is the start he had to the 2005-06 season. In the first month of that campaign, Miles showed flashes of the player many thought he could become.

In 14 November games that season, Miles averaged 18.8 points, 2.6 assists, 5.7 boards and at least one steal and one block per contest. Then he went down with his injury and Portlanders quickly forgot about the talented, experienced forward who was now to spend the next year and a half in relative anonymity.

Since Miles’ injury, the Blazers have become an entirely different team with a cast of fresh-faced, cheery young gunners ready to salvage the reputation of the franchise.

That’s great. But Jarrett Jack, LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy haven’t played in as many games combined as D-Miles. In the NBA, experience counts for something.

In spite of the many criticisms leveled at Miles, he’s stuck around, and he came back from a serious surgery to the point where he’s almost ready to play. That’s got to count for something, too.

Second

One word: Need. With the loss of Oden, the Blazers need to get creative at times with their lineups. Sounds like a job for a guy who can play two positions, defend, and score in a variety of ways. Sounds like a job for Miles.

Miles is a lot like Travis Outlaw, both in build and game. Outlaw is probably the more athletic of the two, but Miles gets the nod on defense and on the boards.

Having two freakish athletes does nothing but help the Blazers, especially when the other two small forwards on the roster are Martell Webster and James Jones, men more renowned for their outside stroke than anything else.

When the Blazers go small, it’s not hard to imagine Miles and Outlaw on the floor together. If this team wants to keep up with the numerous Western Conference teams that like to run (i.e. Phoenix, Dallas, Golden State), than Miles seems to figure into things nicely.

Third

Microfracture surgery is one of the most devastating procedures an NBA player can go through. Coming back to full strength can take over a year, and even then there are no guarantees.

D-Miles has taken a lot of heat for being just another Jail Blazer, for being cancer in the locker room who doesn’t respect the game, the coaches or the fans.

But Miles said at the Blazers’ recent media day that he’s been rehabbing seven days a week and that he’s looking forward to coming back and honoring his contract. Those don’t sound like the words of cancer. They sound like the words of a leader.

And with a son due in just over a month, it seems Miles might finally be maturing as a man. The real question is whether that maturity will allow him to fulfill the immense potential he had as a player when he first entered the league.

The only way that question will get answered is when Miles steps onto the court for the first time, back into the spotlight where, against the backdrop of a brand-new team, he will have to prove he’s not the same old guy.