The Utah Jazz have once again added one of Australia’s most well-known basketball players to the roster.
Rather than Joe Ingles or Dante Exum, this time, it’s 15-year NBA veteran Patty Mills, who signed a one-year, $3.3 million deal with the Jazz that is fully guaranteed. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was first to report the news.
Mills just turned 36 on Sunday, but the Jazz will be hoping he still has something to offer them on and off the court. Mills struggled to find playing time last year with both the Atlanta Hawks and the Miami Heat, playing in a total of 32 games with the two teams. He averaged 4.0 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 13 minutes per game.
But Mills, who perhaps made most of his reputation as part of the championship San Antonio Spurs team is also highly regarded as a veteran leader off the court. Jazz head coach Will Hardy worked alongside Mills for much of that 10-year run under legendary head coach Gregg Popovich.
The Australian is also well known for his charitable works, founding the Team Mills Foundation, which supports minority and underprivileged groups in his homeland and elsewhere. In 2020, Mills donated his entire salary from the NBA’s COVID bubble — $1.5 million — to charity.
This story will be updated.
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