MIAMI (AP) — Patty Mills still remembers being upset when Miami beat San Antonio in the 2013 NBA Finals. And he knows Heat fans probably haven’t forgiven him for his role on the Spurs in leading the Heat the following season in the title series rematch.
Mills hopes to win over those fans now.
The Heat’s newest addition was with the team in Dallas on Thursday for his first game in a Miami uniform, after signing a deal a day earlier for the remainder of the season. At 35, he thinks he can still bring a lot to a contender — that’s why he wanted to be in Miami, and he already sees parallels between the Heat culture and the way the Spurs operated during his nine years. years in San Antonio.
“I think about where I am in my career and what I’ve already been able to accomplish, being part of a culture like this, a winning environment, a goal in mind and understanding that the different aspects of people playing their role, playing their role to be able to achieve the goal, that’s definitely the backbone for me, what I come from and what my values are,” Mills said. “I think there are a lot of values there that fit the culture here.”
Mills had a 14-point third quarter for the Spurs in Game 5 of the 2014 NBA Finals, going 4-for-4 on 3-pointers in the span of 4 minutes of that period, which pretty much guaranteed that the series of titles would happen. I will not spend that night in San Antonio. The Spurs clinched the title with a 104-87 victory, the last game LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade would play together as Heat teammates.
Mills played sparingly in 19 games with Atlanta on the bench this season before being waived on February 29, in time to preserve his playoff eligibility with another team. The Heat will become the fifth NBA team Mills has played for, joining San Antonio, Portland, Brooklyn and the Hawks.
He has tons of big game experience: 95 NBA playoff games, two trips to the NBA Finals (both with the Spurs, both against Miami), four trips to the Conference Finals and he’s a four-time Olympian for Australia. Mills plans to be with the Boomers for a fifth Olympic appearance this summer at the Paris Games.
“If you look at the situation for the next few months, you know what is on the table in terms of goals to be achieved,” Mills said. “I’m very excited about putting all the eggs in one basket here. I expect there to be a huge few months ahead – starting here with the Heat, then in Paris with the Boomers.
The Heat liked his experience and needed more depth at point guard after Josh Richardson – who dislocated his shoulder in a game against Boston last month – opted to have surgery this week, this which ended any chance of his return before next season. Miami agreed to the deal with Mills on Tuesday, the same day it was announced that Richardson would have his season-ending procedure on Wednesday.
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