Nigel Miguel
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Nigel Patrick Miguel (born April 8, 1963) is a
Belizean-American Belizean Americans are Americans who are of Belizean ancestry. These ancestors might be from Belize or of its diaspora. Diaspora About one out of every three Belizeans now live overseas and outside of Belize; the majority have migrated to Angl ...
actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
,
film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...
, and
technical advisor In film production, a technical advisor is someone who advises the director on the convincing portrayal of a subject. The advisor's expertise adds realism both to the acting and to the setting of a movie. Nipo T. Strongheart Nipo T. Stronghear ...
who is the
film commissioner Film commissions are quasi-governmental, non-profit, public organizations that attract motion media production crews (including movies, television, and commercials) to shoot on location in their respective localities, and offer support so that p ...
for
Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...
. He is also a former professional
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player. A native of Belize, he immigrated to the United States when he was six, and holds
dual citizenship Multiple/dual citizenship (or multiple/dual nationality) is a legal status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a national or citizen of more than one country under the laws of those countries. Conceptually, citizenship is focused on ...
with both countries. Miguel played
college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
for the
UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF). ...
, earning all-conference honors in the
Pacific-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Division ...
(currently known as the Pac-12). He played one season professionally in the
Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball m ...
(CBA). Using his athletic skills and basketball talents, he later landed acting and advisor roles in commercials, movies, and television. In 1994, Miguel was appointed by Belize as
goodwill ambassador Goodwill ambassador is a post-nominal honorific title, a professional occupation and/or authoritative designation that is assigned to a person who advocates for a specific cause or global issue on the basis of their notability such as a public ...
to the United States, and the government named him its film commissioner in 2008. Miguel has also owned
production company A production company, production house, production studio, or a production team is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and ...
II Jam Casting & Production since 1995.


Early life

Miguel was born in
British Honduras British Honduras was a British Crown colony on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony, renamed Belize in June 1973,
, now known as Belize, and grew up in
Belize City Belize City is the largest city in Belize and was once the capital of the former British Honduras. According to the 2010 census, Belize City has a population of 57,169 people in 16,162 households. It is at the mouth of the Haulover Creek, wh ...
. His formative years were spent in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
, after his family left Belize when he was six. They settled in Los Angeles, and moved to
Pacoima Pacoima (Tongva: ''Pacoinga'') is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. Pacoima is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the San Fernando Valley region of LA. Geography Location Pacoima is bordered by the Los Angeles districts of Mission Hill ...
when he was 13. He played basketball at Notre Dame High School in
Sherman Oaks, California Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...
. As a senior
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...
in 1981, he led his team to a 19-5 overall record and the
Del Rey League The Del Rey League is a high school athletic conference that is part of the CIF Southern Section. Members are mostly private, parochial schools in the South Bay affiliated the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Member schools * Bishop Amat ...
championship. Miguel averaged 23.1
point Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...
s and 10.0 rebounds and was named to the
California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have a s ...
(CIF) 4A first-team. He also earned
McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger ...
honors.


Basketball career


College career

Miguel decided to attend college at the
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
(UCLA) over the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...
(USC), their crosstown rival. He was recruited to UCLA by coach Larry Brown; however, Brown left after the 1980–81 season, and Miguel played under coach
Larry Farmer Larry Farmer may refer to: *Larry Farmer (basketball) Larry Farmer (born January 31, 1951) is an American basketball coach and former player. Farmer served as the head basketball coach at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 198 ...
for his first three seasons. He became the first Belizean to play in Division I sports. His play was disappointing; in his junior year in 1983–84, he averaged only 4 points a game with a
field goal percentage Field goal percentage in basketball is the ratio of field goals made to field goals attempted. Its abbreviation is FG%. Although three-point field goal percentage is often calculated separately, three-point field goals are included in the gener ...
of just 39.8%.
Walt Hazzard Mahdi Abdul-Rahman (born Walter Raphael Hazzard Jr.; April 15, 1942 – November 18, 2011) was an American professional basketball player and college basketball coach. He played in college for the UCLA Bruins and was a member of their first natio ...
became the UCLA coach in Miguel's senior year. After playing at both forward and
guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...
under Farmer, he was moved to
point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...
by Hazzard. In
his final season His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...
, Miguel became a defensive stopper, and defended the opponents' best scorer. His scoring also improved to an average of 12 points while shooting 48.6%. Miguel earned All-Pac-10 honors and was also named Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year while helping lead the Bruins to the
1985 National Invitation Tournament The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
championship. He graduated from UCLA in 1985 with a degree in
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
.


Professional career

Miguel tried out for the
New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
(now known as the Brooklyn Nets) of the
National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
(NBA) after they selected him in the third round of the
1985 NBA draft The 1985 NBA Draft took place on June 18, 1985. It was also the first NBA draft of the "lottery" era. It was also around this time where the league decreased the amount of rounds the draft spent, with the previous few years lasting up to 10 roun ...
with the 62nd overall pick. After the guard was cut by the Nets in training camp, he joined the
La Crosse Catbirds The La Crosse Catbirds was an American basketball team based in La Crosse, Wisconsin and member of the Continental Basketball Association. The Catbirds were the 1990 and 1992 CBA champions. The team moved to La Crosse from Louisville in 1985, an ...
, a new team in the CBA. He played all 48 games in the regular season while shooting 48.2% and averaging 17.5 points, and earned All-CBA rookie team honors as a point guard. He finished second on the team behind former NBA player Paul Thompson in scoring, and was also runner-up behind former NBA player Michael Adams for CBA Rookie of the Year. Miguel improved in the playoffs, when he shot 50.6% and averaged 21.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9
assist Assist or ASSIST may refer to: Sports Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team: *Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...
s and 1.5 steals. La Crosse advanced to the championship round against the
Tampa Bay Thrillers The Tampa Bay Thrillers were a franchise in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) from 1984–1987. They won back-to-back championships in 1984–85 and 1985–86. At the end of the 1986–87 CBA regular season the team relocated to Rapi ...
, but he missed the first two games with a pulled hamstring and played the remainder of the series hurt; the Catbirds lost to the Thrillers 4–1. After receiving invitations to training camp from multiple NBA teams in 1986–87, Miguel settled on the Nets' two-year contract offer over the
Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
' one-year deal. The timing seemed ideal for Miguel, as the Nets were without any of their guards from the prior season. However, Miguel broke a bone in his left heel during the final week of camp, and he was released by New Jersey after being paid the one guaranteed year from his contract. He returned to the Nets in 1987–88, but he was slower after his injury, and again was cut. Miguel lost the desire to continue playing, and his basketball career ended.


Entertainment career

While out of basketball with his foot injury, Miguel secured an agent to pursue an acting career. Using his athletic skills and basketball talents, he landed acting roles. In late 1987, Miguel had a small role in a commercial for
Reebok Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...
, and others followed, including spots for
Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...
,
Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...
and
Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi was ...
. In 1991, he won the role of Dwight the Flight in the movie ''
White Men Can't Jump ''White Men Can't Jump'' is a 1992 American sports comedy film written and directed by Ron Shelton. It stars Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson as streetball hustlers. The film was released in the United States on March 27, 1992, by 20th Century ...
''. He has appeared in numerous other Hollywood and television movies, as well as television series. Miguel also spent seven years as the
body double In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes FOR another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stunt ...
for
Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
. Additionally, he has served as a basketball technical advisor on movies including ''
Space Jam ''Space Jam'' is a 1996 American live-action/animated sports comedy film directed by Joe Pytka, with animation sequences directed by Bruce W. Smith and Tony Cervone, and written by Leo Benvenuti, Steve Rudnick, Timothy Harris, and Herschel We ...
'', '' Elizabethtown'', and '' Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault'', as well as an adviser for Nike commercials. Since 1995, Miguel has owned II Jam Casting & Production, a
production company A production company, production house, production studio, or a production team is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and ...
which places athletes and musicians in commercial and films. The company has worked with individuals such as athletes Jordan,
LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...
, and
Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...
as well as musician
Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...
and director
Philip Atwell Philip G. Atwell is an American music video, television commercial and feature film director. Starting out as a music video producer, he took up directing in 1999. Often co-directing with Dr. Dre, he has helped out with many music videos for ...
.


Ambassador for Belize

The Belize government appointed Miguel as its first
goodwill ambassador Goodwill ambassador is a post-nominal honorific title, a professional occupation and/or authoritative designation that is assigned to a person who advocates for a specific cause or global issue on the basis of their notability such as a public ...
to the United States in 1994. He was tasked with promoting jobs for the youth of Belize, and encouraging U.S. companies to establish branch offices and franchises in Belize. In 2008, the government elevated Miguel to Film Commissioner for the Government of Belize to promote and enhance the country's film industry locally and abroad. The position had been vacant since the death of
Emory King Emory King (February 22, 1931, Jacksonville, Florida, United States – August 14, 2007) was a Belizean historian, author, and journalist. He served the nation of Belize in a number of capacities, including as National Film Commissioner. Trav ...
.


Filmography


Film


Television


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Miguel, Nigel 1963 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Film producers from California American male television actors Basketball players from Los Angeles 20th-century Belizean male actors 21st-century Belizean male actors Belizean men's basketball players Belizean emigrants to the United States Belizean television actors La Crosse Catbirds players American male film actors McDonald's High School All-Americans Notre Dame High School (Sherman Oaks, California) alumni New Jersey Nets draft picks Point guards UCLA Bruins men's basketball players American men's basketball players