The Atlanta Hawks waived Spurs fan-favorite Patty Mills on Thursday. Whereas Patty has bounced round a bit not too long ago, I’ll all the time consider Patty in a Spurs jersey — or within the nationwide jersey of his beloved Australia. Together with the Nice Tim Duncan, Patty has been one of many best teammates within the league since he debuted. He has persistently led the league in sprinting over to assist a fallen teammate off the ground (stats unofficial, however nonetheless significant and emblematic of Patty Mills). He was a late second spherical decide by the Path Blazers in 2009 and made his NBA debut in January 2010, a very long time in the past.
He had a exceptional and memorable stretch of taking pictures within the clinching Recreation 5 of the 2014 NBA Finals (additionally a very long time in the past — that is the tenth anniversary season of the apex of the Stunning Recreation Spurs). Patty checked into the sport for Tony Parker with 7:01 left within the third quarter, with the Warmth nonetheless in hanging distance at 54-43. Within the subsequent three minutes and nineteen seconds of the sport, he made a two-pointer, after which 4 threes and not using a miss, extending the Spurs result in twenty, and basically ending the sequence. Patty solely performed 18 minutes that evening however was plus 15 in these memorable minutes.
I prefer to suppose that Patty’s 14 factors in simply over three minutes immediately led to LeBron James uttering phrases that had by no means been uttered earlier than: “I’d slightly be in Cleveland than Miami Seashore.” Good on ya’, Patty!
In my December 2021 Pounding the Rock ballot, Patty was voted the perfect Spurs shooter ever. Even at age 35, he’s nonetheless a real Shooter. Even in restricted minutes this season, he shot 38% from three, simply off his profession 39%. I hope some staff who wants a Shooter, an Aussie and a very nice Teammate offers Patty another run at an NBA Championship.
Different ideas
1. I titled this text “The Quick and Lengthy of it” so I might write just a bit bit about Victor Wembanyama. I’ve prevented doing a lot Wembanyama-writing as a result of others right here at PTR are already doing it so nicely. However I did wish to announce that I’ve decreed that anytime a participant will get 20 factors, 10 boards and 5 blocks in a recreation, that recreation will likely be known as a “Wemby”. I anticipate Victor to guide the league in Wembys for a very long time to come back.
2. A good friend and I have been discussing Victor’s current recreation with 5 three-pointers and 5 blocks, the primary particular person ever to mix these stats with 25 factors, 10 boards and 5 assists. The 5 block/5 three-pointer combo was what made that stat line so distinctive for a easy motive: most gamers who get 5 blocks merely aren’t taking pictures, let alongside making, 5 threes in a recreation. As affirmation, I seemed up the gamers who’ve had probably the most video games with 5 or extra blocks. Not surprisingly, the record is dominated by huge guys who not often if ever shot three-pointers. Right here is the record, courtesy of Statmuse. Not till you get all the best way all the way down to Brook Lopez in nineteenth place do you discover somebody who averaged at the least one made three-pointer per recreation.
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3. In case you’re questioning, Victor already has 16 video games with 5 or extra blocks, nearly one each three video games. Hakeem Olajuwon, the all-time chief in five-block video games, averaged one such recreation for each six video games he performed. Put one other approach, Victor achieves this milestone about twice as usually because the NBA’s all-time chief did in his profession.
4. Within the Spurs win over Thunder, Invoice Land talked about that the Spurs have now crushed each of the 2 prime groups within the Western Convention, Minnesota and OKC. Increase your hand when you predicted that these two groups can be 1 and a pair of within the West. In the event you raised your hand, I don’t imagine you. Curiously, whereas we consider each groups as younger, solely one in every of them really is. OKC is the third youngest staff, whereas the T’Wolves are center of the pack at twelfth, with three rotation guys (together with two starters) 30 or over — Kyle “Gradual Mo” Anderson, Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley.
5. I used to be sporting my Spurs’ taking pictures shirt whereas hitting golf balls on the vary this morning, which led the golfer subsequent to me to ask if I used to be a Spurs fan. It seems that my new good friend Otis is from Boston, however his favourite participant is identical as mine: Manu Ginobili. I instructed him about my Manu shirt assortment. I ought to have additionally talked about my Manu retirement put up, however he can learn it now. Most significantly, Otis instructed me that his first date together with his now-wife and mother-of-his-children was at a Celtics-Spurs recreation in Boston. Better of all, Mrs. Otis is a big Spurs fan and invited Otis to that recreation, not the opposite approach round. I believe Otis determined proper then and there and this was the proper lady for him.
There are additionally rumors that Otis’s staff, the Celtics, are thinking about signing our man Patty Mills. I hope the Celtics signal Patty in order that Otis and his spouse can each root for Patty Mills to as soon as once more get scorching in a Finals recreation, simply as he did for the Spurs ten years in the past.
