Patrick Mills and the Context of Making Shots When It Counts

[Brazil]

Interesting insight. Many here believe that Patty will opt out of his contract this summer and look for a team that offers more potential playing time. I listen to his interviews and watch him with the team and believe that he'll stay.

I think Spurs are seeing Mills as the back up PG potentially capable to take over after TP retire and NDC as a strict SG doing the same with Manu. For me both have some major flaws to achieve that but they probably can develop. Spurs FO are clearly seeing potential in those 2, we will see.

[capek]

The tl;dr of the matter is Mills has unequivocally struggled in close games and in first halves. Given his overall strong numbers, my humble opinion is that those struggles are notable and have played a role in his inability to nail down a role.

Yeppers, that's totally in line with what I've observed, which is why I've been rather vocal in backing De Colo. Of course, De Colo has underwhelmed more often then not, but I still mostly believe that his natural court vision is a skill that makes him worth developing this season. No one skill of Patty's, imo, is as potentially valuable as Nando's natural court vision, so unless Patty had been coming in all season, hitting his shots and providing instant offense, it's just less valuable to play him in favor of Nando. in my eyes, last night was literally the first good game Mills has played this season, where as Nando has had several good games. I'm still on the Nando bandwagon, but he's really going to have to start putting things together quickly for me to feel confident about him being the back up pg in the playoffs.

[capek]

I think Spurs are seeing Mills as the back up PG potentially capable to take over after TP retire and NDC as a strict SG doing the same with Manu. For me both have some major flaws to achieve that but they probably can develop. Spurs FO are clearly seeing potential in those 2, we will see.

Honestly I don't understand how anyone could see Nando as a SG, when his best skill is his court vision, which is only exploited if he has the ball in his hands because he's playings PG.

[Mel_13]

With Tony and Manu on the bench, Nando is the best choice for lead guard. With Tony on the bench and Manu in the game, I still like Mills as a backcourt partner for Manu.

[Bruno]

I'm not sure the sample size is big enough to draw some kind of conclusions.

[phxspurfan]

Agreed, sample size is too small. Jack was on the Spurs for more than a season before doing anything, and even then he was a turnover machine while he filled up the points column.

And the bench needs his towel waving. For the good of the team he must stay in that last seat.

[pad300]

2. The Spurs plan for him is long term, his plan long term is to work his way into being TP's unquestionable backup and then take over one Tony hangs up his boots, he loves the Spurs and is a fiercely loyal person, so he would be happy to work on a fairly low (by NBA standards) wage to stay.

Not sure I believe this at all. IF anyone on the current roster is earmarked as Tony's heir, I suspect that it is Cojo. Mills will get a chance, if only because of his youth, but the Spurs have invested a lot in Cojo - and they continue to invest in him (picking up his rookie options...).

[Brazil]

Honestly I don't understand how anyone could see Nando as a SG, when his best skill is his court vision, which is only exploited if he has the ball in his hands because he's playings PG.

I disagree with that. Manu is a perfect example of a SG who can exploit his court vision. NDC is not quick enough imho to stay in front of the best PGs of the league, I do believe he is more suited to play SG.

[Solid D]

Other than extra effort trying to make steals, Patty has been a disappointment. He clanks too often on open perimeter shots.

[Roger Freemason Jr.]

I don't think Patty has been a disappointment. He's a walking 20 point game, and we've seen him make some nifty passes. His court vision needs to develop, and his play-making. The Spurs can turn Patty into a fantastic back-up PG. He's still young, and is one of those players that needs extensive time to develop.

[capek]

I disagree with that. Manu is a perfect example of a SG who can exploit his court vision. NDC is not quick enough imho to stay in front of the best PGs of the league, I do believe he is more suited to play SG.

I don't think that Manu is a fair comparison at all. Manu is a world class scorer, who also has great handles and all-time great BB IQ. Manu has a wealth of skills, whereas Nando's skill set is much more limited. Imo he's limited to being a distributor, which is why I can't really picture him playing any other position on this team than PG. Maybe he'll develop into a more well rounded player overtime, but I haven't seen anything that makes me think he could be a legitimate SG on this team.

[Brazil]

I don't think that Manu is a fair comparison at all. Manu is a world class scorer, who also has great handles and all-time great BB IQ. Manu has a wealth of skills, whereas Nando's skill set is much more limited. Imo he's limited to being a distributor, which is why I can't really picture him playing any other position on this team than PG. Maybe he'll develop into a more well rounded player overtime, but I haven't seen anything that makes me think he could be a legitimate SG on this team.

The most likely outcome for him in the NBA is for me to play SG unless you have a perimeter D playing with him capable to defend the quickest PGs of the league and Nando defending the opponent SG. If you talk about the best compromise on both end of the floor SG seems to be his spot.

[TJastal]

With Tony and Manu on the bench, Nando is the best choice for lead guard. With Tony on the bench and Manu in the game, I still like Mills as a backcourt partner for Manu.

This. Another thing going in Patty's favor is he is adept at finding shots, lots if them. And given he'll be in the same unit as jackson it means less shots for SJ which is a good thing for the spurs.

[DesignatedT]

The insight about the Spurs having a long term goal for Patty is interesting. I do think he will stay next season as well and that Neal will be gone.

Obviously if Manu is going to be in the game with the 2nd unit it becomes easier to play both Patty and Gary. I think everyone sees that Patty is the better effort player as well as defender but for some reason the coaching staff wants to stick with Neal. Neal has hit some very big shots over the years so that has definitely helped him through this slump of his. I get very frustrated with Neal, especially defensively which makes me wish Patty would get more of an opportunity playing next to Manu but a part of me wonders if Neal has been hampered by some fairly serious injuries that have had an affect on his game. I know their were reports of a lower leg or achilles problem earlier in the year or something like that. He has been pretty damn awful this whole season though.

[benfti]

The good news is, as this thread is evidence to the affirmative, we can legitimately argue the benefit of having a guy currently sitting at 12th on the depth chart getting more minutes. (Gee our depth is good)

[therealtruth]

There's no reason Nando can't become the next Greivis Vasquez.

[racm]

There's no reason Nando can't become the next Greivis Vasquez.

If he learns to shoot and always has the ball at the start of every possession, yes.

Establishing a pick and roll rapport with Splitter like how Vasquez established one with Robin Lopez should help.

[Nero5]

The point about party's youth is a valid one and should be considered with his low cost and off court attributes. There is a considerable amount of potential and upside. The nature of a fan forum is often a short attention span and a chicken little approach to performance. The spurs have two years to measure progress with patty. In that time he will be an asset to other members of the team and to the club, these intangible factors do not show up on the score sheet but are absolutely beneficial. Look at how Portland felt about him and his role in working with rudy Fernandez and how well he did representing the club off court.
There are plenty of players with better stats but more corrosive personalities that would not fit this club as well IMHO.
Dare I say that Australian players and many other foreign nationals know exactly how privileged they are to play in the NBA and have little in the sense of en lement.

[DanAu]

Given the context of this thread and the long term goals mentioned, I find it VERY interesting to see pop's comments about Tony:"He's really matured as a player," Popovich said of Parker. "He used to just be a scoring point guard and didn't realize there was a whole 'nother world out there, and now he plays a complete game on both ends of the court."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-...,1839560.story

Seems to me that they KNOW Mills can be a scoring PG, that's not an issue. Seems also that they want him to learn to be that all-round player that Tony is NOW, not like he was at the start of his career, trying not to repeat history.

The question is if Mills is good enough to be what the Spurs want him to be and if he grows into that player or not.

[wildbill2u]

DeColo is going to have to hone that 'court vision' so that he makes the right decision with the ball instead of trying some pinpoint pass to an unsuspecting teammate. He's causing some needless TOs when he does that, especially when he's got a good shot for himself after he's worked his way inside that he ought to take.

Meanwhile, he really isn't a good enough shooter to make it as a 2. Maybe Chip can develop his shooting skills and mechanics, but the decision making will be the key.

[TD 21]

I'm not sure the sample size is big enough to draw some kind of conclusions.

Agreed. It's probably mostly, if not entirely, attributable to law of averages. The reality is, if he had shot even decently in non garbage time minutes, he'd be one of the best shooters in the league, because even having not done so, his overall percentages are still good.

On this team, he's more than likely never going to be anything more than a deep bench player, but I don't buy for a second that he couldn't be a primary backup elsewhere. Off the top: Cavaliers, Mavericks, Rockets, Lakers, Grizzlies, Knicks, Hornets, 76ers, Suns, Trail Blazers, Raptors and Wizards, are all teams he'd have at least a legit shot at being the primary backup on.

[z0sa]

Mills is Mills is Mills. Hitting shots consistently in the guts of the game is asking a lot of him, IMHO.

[TVI]

I hope I can shed some light on this a bit.

Awesome read. I like Patty, and I hope he can gain the confidence of the FO. He reminds me a little of Damon Stoudamire.

[Ice009]

I thought this was the very reason why Patrick hasn't broken into the rotation. I thought most people saw the same thing. Every time that he got an opportunity, he kept missing most of his shots when the game was up for grabs.

[ace3g]