There’s a nice, happy headline from ESPN.com: Portland Blazers draft pick Patty Mills to miss summer league after breaking foot.
After watching Mills play better than any other Boomer in the Olympics (including the always-underwhelming Andrew Bogut), including a 20-point performance against Team USA that caused Kobe Bryant and Mike Krzyzewski to shower the young Aboriginal point guard with as much praise as I’ve ever seen either man give anyone not named Shannon Brown or “Wojo,” Mills looked like he could the Australian Tony Parker. With a little luck, anyway.
Unfortunately for Mills, positively awful luck has been the theme since Beijing.
He started off great, leading Saint Mary’s to an 18-1 record. Then he broke his hand in Gonzaga just before halftime (do they not drink milk in Australia?), after making 6-of-8 threes in the first half to give the Gaels a 39-33 lead they would soon relinquish. Since then, the little guy has seemingly been cursed.
St. Mary’s missed the NCAA Tournament, in part because Mills came back too soon from injury and wasn’t able to prevent Gonzaga from routing the Gaels in the WCC Tournament Final. After a mediocre NIT, Mills entered the draft as a potential first round candidate.
Unfortunately, the draft was full of larger, more celebrated point guards than Mills, and Patty fell to Portland at No. 55. Portland’s roster isn’t exactly wanting for talented NBA-quality players, so the only chance Mills really had to make the team was if he dominated the summer league to he point where he could be seen as a potential replacement for Sergio Rodriguez as the primary backup to Steve Blake (although it was doubtful he would have made it ahead of Jerryd Bayless on the depth chart, even if he never broke the fifth metatarsal on his foot…in his first practice with the team, no less).
Now, instead of lightning quick Aussie superstar, Mills looks like a fragile, undersized not-quite-PG who can’t shoot that well. His best chances to further his career probably lie overseas, as long as he can keep his bones from snapping like peanut brittle.
And to think, he could have been a top-5 PG in college had he stayed in Moraga, where his injury would have been an inconvenience, not a deal-breaker. Kids, stay in school.
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Guys,
With all due respect to the current talent …yes talent ! that run the floor in the majority of pro teams ,I am afraid Mills like a large % of internatioal players ,ot just guards has been all but written off before he even gets a chance to once again prove himself. like most fans i talk to we are sick and tired of the marketable Ego’s that are constantly selected above the decent all round nice guy who just happens to have GAME and not just talent. as we all no SIZE as you call it doesn’t win you games . it’s heart and belief ! .there is a great number of sizeable stiffs running around contributing a hell of alot less than Mills did as a 5 foot nothing teenager in hight school .what is there like 5 or 6 quality 7 footers int he pro game in the US ? out of like 30 odd ? anyway my point is the point is where is all happans and if you don’t have HEART and BELEIF you have an EGO who eventually sulks as its all about him ! seen it to many times and it really gets to me. guys like Patrick are pushed aside for what ?! some big mouth ,big talking EGO ?? come on we want a show not a COMMERCIAL .
time to get real and stop looking for the HIGH LIGHT reel.