Australian basketball star Patty Mills may not have set the court on fire in the NBA this season – at least not from a numbers perspective.
In fact, he played just 17 matches for the Utah Jazz before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers just before the mid-season All-Star break, where he finished the season with 12, and then one playoff game.
But it’s what he brings to the team off the court. The Australian still has considerable pull as a locker-room figure for younger players, given his leadership qualities and status as a 2014 championship winner.
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Watching the Australian star during the Los Angeles derby between the Clippers and Lakers, he was the first player to spring up from the bench during a timeout. Whether it was backslapping to create morale while the team was down or just waving his towel around to create energy after a big play.
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Even though he may know he’s not getting any court time that game, his energy alone leads the way in being a model team player.
“It’s part of a team sport. It’s a part of doing your part and making an impact on a team, whether it is on the court or off the court,” Mills told The Roar during the NBA season.
“It’s understanding what a team needs and doing it to the best of your ability.
“I have no regrets in doing it.”
It’s been quite the journey for the 36-year-old, born and raised in Canberra. Making his NBA debut in the 2009-10 season, he has gone on to play for seven clubs: Portland, San Antonio, Brooklyn, Atlanta, Miami, Utah and the LA Clippers.
The Australian NBA veteran has been a free agent since his Clippers suffered a 4-3 playoff series loss to Western Conference rivals the Denver Nuggets. Mills has not had a long-term NBA home since being traded by the Brooklyn Nets in July 2023, suiting up for four different teams in the subsequent two seasons.
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - JULY 16: Patty Mills #5 of Australia passes the ball while driving to the basket defended by Nikola Jokic #15 and Aleksa Radanov #12 of Serbia during the second half of an exhibition game between Australia and Serbia ahead of the Paris Olympic Games at Etihad Arena on July 16, 2024 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Christopher Pike/Getty Images)
Patty Mills passes the ball while driving to the basket, defended by Nikola Jokic. (Photo by Christopher Pike/Getty Images)
Mills was also the 25th oldest player in the NBA this season and will turn 37 before the new season tips off in October.
It is unclear whether the Clippers will extend his deal for next season, or another club will pick up the veteran, given that his last season’s contract was not signed until weeks before the season started.
But the Boomers captain wouldn’t be against a return to Los Angeles.
“(Settled in) great. This is a hell of an organisation,” Mills said of his time at the LA Clippers.
“From all accounts, on court, off court, the people in the locker room. I have been reuniting with a lot of old teammates that I have played with during my 16 years – that part’s been fun.
“The staff are great, the people are great, and there’s a great focus.
“I never take for granted being in a winning environment. It’s good to be back here playing my part and what is needed from my role here.”
But Mills is still very much respected by his peers, which was reflected in All-Star voting this year.
Dyson Daniels received eight votes from fellow players, which was the most by an Australian, but Mills ran second as the only other Aussie to post double digits.
That was despite a big drop off in numbers, not only in minutes, but also in points.
Scoring-wise, Mills arguably peaked in the 2021-22 season with Brooklyn, with 794 FG attempts at 40.8%, (227/568 coming from three-point range), which yielded 923 points for the season.
Last year, from his two clubs, Mills posted just 101 points, with just 36 field goals (17 three-pointers).
(Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
If he doesn’t get another year in America, NBL owner Larry Kestelman would love to see Mills feature in the Australian league.
He believed Mills would at some point follow fellow Aussies Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova and Aron Baynes in returning from NBA stints to play on home soil.
There are already reports that the Perth Wildcats have held talks with the Boomer as a replacement for Bryce Cotton.
“I would be surprised if Patty at some stage doesn’t come and play here. I know that’s his want and intent,” Kestelman said.
“When that is (that) needs to be on his terms, when he feels right about it.
“I can’t speak for whether it’s this year or next, but our hope is that he absolutely comes and plays in front of his family and fans here in the NBL.”
Playing in the NBL would come with a hefty pay cut for Mills, whose deal for the 2024/25 season was worth $5.3 million. The salary cap for the 2025/26 NBL season sits at a little more than $2 million for an entire squad, but clubs are able to exceed that limit if they pay a luxury tax.
Kestelman, who bought the league in 2015, has always wanted the NBL to be a place Australian superstars could finish their careers. Mills last featured in the NBL for the Melbourne Tigers, now Melbourne United, in 2011.
“It was always part of the vision to have a bit of a circular economy where we can create a product in the NBL that some of the youngest stars can come, develop their skills and go to the NBA,” he said.
“Vice versa, especially for Australians, that there’s a league that they can be proud of to come and play for the last few years of their career.”
It’s been a breakout year for a lot of Australian players across the league.
Daniels won the competition’s award for the Most Improved Player after leading the league with 229 steals.
Jock Landale’s Houston and Johnny Furphy’s Indiana made the playoffs, while Josh Giddey played a starring role for Chicago this year but fell over at the play-in game against Miami, as did Josh Green’s Dallas against Memphis.
“It’s great to see, feeding off a lot of Boomers games at the World Cup and Olympics, it’s awesome to see them succeed over here in the NBA too,” Mills said.
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One player who Mills got to see up close over the past few seasons was Ben Simmons.
The pair shared time together at the Brooklyn Nets, and despite Simmons having some patchy seasons due to injury, Mills is seeing some improvement, especially since the move to Los Angeles.
“(Simmons) is great and a unique player in the fact of how physical he is and how well he reads the game with his IQ,” Mills told The Roar.
“He also has an ability to defend and guard multiple positions. So, his physicality is really elite with his defensive abilities.
“Then on the other side, he has great vision and court awareness. He is elite in the open court, being able to find guys in transition situations and also on the rim and on threes.
“I think that ignites a lot of offence when we play like that. He’s the head of that.”