Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Patty Mills

From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Patty Mills made an impact.

Patty Mills is an Australian professional basketball player currently playing for the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA. Of Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal Australian descent, he was raised in Canberra and in 2007, became the third Indigenous basketball player to represent Australia's national team. After two years of college basketball at Saint Mary's Gaels, Mills was drafted into the NBA by the Portland Trail Blazers as the 55th overall pick in the 2009 draft.

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Full Timeline Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

2007: Playing for the Australian National Team

In 2007, Patty Mills became the third Indigenous basketball player to play for the Australian national team.

2007: Senior National Team Debut

In 2007, Patty Mills made his senior national team debut for the Australian Boomers at the FIBA Oceania Championship, becoming the third Indigenous basketball player to represent Australia at that level.

2007: Qualifying for the 2007 Junior Men's World Championships

In 2007, as a member of the 2006 Junior National Men's Team, Patty Mills helped Australia defeat New Zealand to qualify for the 2007 Junior Men's World Championships.

June 2009: Selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA draft

On June 25, 2009, Patty Mills was selected with the 55th overall pick by the Portland Trail Blazers, becoming the first Saint Mary's player since 1983 to be drafted.

October 2009: Signed a contract with the Trail Blazers

On October 16, 2009, Patty Mills signed a contract with the Portland Trail Blazers.

December 2009: Assigned to the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League

On December 29, 2009, Patty Mills was assigned to the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League after completing rehabilitation.

2009: Selected in the NBA draft

In 2009, Patty Mills was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 55th overall pick in the NBA draft after playing college basketball for Saint Mary's Gaels.

2010: Played at the FIBA World Championship

In 2010, Patty Mills played for Australia at the FIBA World Championship.

January 2011: Assist Australia Charity Project

In 2011, Patty Mills started the charity project "Assist Australia" following Queensland's floods, having previously helped raise over $40,000 for the first flood relief in 2010.

August 2011: Signed with the Melbourne Tigers

On August 29, 2011, Patty Mills signed with the Melbourne Tigers of the National Basketball League (NBL) during the NBA lockout, reportedly turning down lucrative offers from a number of European teams.

October 2011: Scored a game-high 28 points in Tigers' season opener

In the Tigers' season opener on October 7, 2011, Patty Mills scored a game-high 28 points in an 82–76 win over the Sydney Kings.

2011: Played at the FIBA Oceania Championship

In 2011, Patty Mills played for Australia at the FIBA Oceania Championship.

March 2012: Signed with the San Antonio Spurs

On March 27, 2012, Patty Mills signed with the San Antonio Spurs.

April 2012: Career highs with points and assists in win over Golden State Warriors

On April 26, 2012, Patty Mills set career highs with 34 points and 12 assists for his first NBA double-double in a 107–101 win over the Golden State Warriors, posting the highest single-game score by an Australian in the NBA.

July 2012: Re-signed with the Spurs

On July 13, 2012, Patty Mills re-signed with the San Antonio Spurs.

2012: Represented Australia at the London Olympics

In 2012, Patty Mills represented Australia at the London Olympics, achieving the highest scoring average with 21.2 points per game, surpassing Kevin Durant.

April 2013: Season-high 23 points in loss to Golden State

In the Spurs' second-last game of the regular season on April 15, 2013, Patty Mills scored a season-high 23 points in a 116–106 loss to Golden State.

June 2013: Exercised player option to return to Spurs

On June 24, 2013, Patty Mills exercised his player option to return to the Spurs for the 2013–14 season.

2013: Played at the FIBA Oceania Championship

In 2013, Patty Mills played for Australia at the FIBA Oceania Championship.

July 2014: Signed a three-year contract with the Spurs

On July 11, 2014, Patty Mills signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the San Antonio Spurs.

2014: Won NBA Championship with the Spurs

In 2014, Patty Mills helped the San Antonio Spurs return to the NBA Finals, where they defeated the Miami Heat, winning the NBA Championship.

2015: Played at the FIBA Oceania Championship

In 2015, Patty Mills played at the FIBA Oceania Championship.

2016: Finished fourth at the Rio Olympics

In 2016, Patty Mills helped the Australian Boomers finish fourth at the Rio Olympics.

April 2017: Scored Postseason-High 20 Points

On April 25, 2017, Patty Mills scored a postseason-high 20 points on 5-for-7 shooting in a 116–103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in game 5 of their first-round series.

August 2017: Re-signed with the Spurs on a four-year contract

On August 4, 2017, Patty Mills re-signed with the San Antonio Spurs on a four-year, $50 million contract.

December 2017: 3,000 Career points as a reserve

On December 18, 2017, in a 109–91 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, Patty Mills became one of only three Spurs in franchise history to have scored 3,000 career points as a reserve.

December 2017: Became the third Spur to have made 500 three-pointers as a reserve.

On December 4, 2017, in a 96–93 win over the Detroit Pistons, Patty Mills became the third Spur to have made 500 three-pointers as a reserve.

2017: Co-wrote Game Day! Championship Collection

In 2017, Patty Mills co-wrote a series of books for young readers with Jared Thomas, which were published in 2018 as "Game Day! Championship Collection".

February 2018: Climbed into fourth place on the Spurs' list of all-time three-pointers made

On February 25, 2018, Patty Mills climbed into fourth place on the Spurs' list of all-time three-pointers made during a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

March 2019: Only Spurs player to make more than 120 three-pointers in five different seasons.

In March 2019, Patty Mills became the only Spurs player to make more than 120 three-pointers in five different seasons.

January 2020: Made 1,000th NBA three-pointer

On January 19, 2020, Patty Mills made his 1,000th NBA three-pointer, becoming the first Australian player in NBA history to reach that milestone.

December 2020: Played in 600 games with the Spurs

On December 29, 2020, Patty Mills became the tenth player in Spurs history to play in 600 games with the team. As of December 2020, he was the Spurs' longest-tenured player and the only player remaining on the roster who was a member of the Spurs' NBA championship-winning team in 2014.

2020: Fought Racism and Police Brutality

In 2020, Patty Mills helped launch "We Got You", a campaign to support athletes fighting racism in Australian sport. He also donated about $1 million to Black Lives Matter Australia and Black Deaths in Custody.

2020: Flag bearer and Olympic Medalist

In 2020, at the Tokyo Olympics, Patty Mills became the first Indigenous Australian flag bearer and led Australia to their first Olympic medal in men's basketball, scoring 42 points against Slovenia. He also earned honors as shooting guard in the Tokyo 2020 All Star Five.

January 2021: Set NBA Record for Most Three-Point Shots Made for One Team as a Reserve

On January 18, 2021, Patty Mills set an NBA record for most three-point shots made for one team as a reserve.

August 2021: Signed with the Brooklyn Nets

On August 10, 2021, Patty Mills signed with the Brooklyn Nets.

July 2022: Re-signed with the Nets on a two-year contract

On July 10, 2022, Patty Mills re-signed with the Brooklyn Nets on a two-year, $14.5 million contract.

July 2023: Traded to the Houston Rockets

On 6 July 2023, Patty Mills was traded by the Brooklyn Nets, along with a 2028 second-round draft pick, to the Houston Rockets in exchange for future draft considerations. Subsequently, he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder and then to the Atlanta Hawks.

February 2024: Waived by the Hawks

On 29 February 2024, the Atlanta Hawks waived Patty Mills.

March 2024: Signed with the Miami Heat

On 6 March 2024, Patty Mills signed with the Miami Heat.

September 2024: Signed with the Utah Jazz

On 5 September 2024, Patty Mills signed with the Utah Jazz.

2024: Represented Australia at the Paris Olympics

In 2024, Patty Mills represented Australia at the Paris Olympics, where he moved to fifth place on the all-time scoring list, surpassing Wlamir Marques. He finished the tournament as Australia's second-leading scorer with 66 points, bringing his career total to 567.

February 2025: Traded to the Los Angeles Clippers

On 1 February 2025, Patty Mills was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers alongside Drew Eubanks in exchange for Mo Bamba, P. J. Tucker, a 2030 second-round pick and cash considerations.