According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Miami Heat are reportedly signing free agent guard Patty Mills. Mills was most recently with the Atlanta Hawks. However, the team waived him on February 29. Because the Hawks waived Mills before March 1, he is eligible to play for the Heat this postseason. On the season, the 35-year-old is averaging 2.7 points in 10.6 minutes per game.
The Australian native has been in the NBA since 2009. Most notably, Mills won an NBA championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Mills has made a solid career as a reliable bench scorer. With this move, the guard joins a 34-26 Heat team who are 8-2 in their last 10 games.
Free agent Patty Mills is planning to sign with the Miami Heat, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 5, 2024
NBA News: Miami Heat Signing Former NBA Champion
What Patty Mills Brings to the Miami Heat
In his career, Mills is a 38.9% shooter from beyond the arc. His three-point shooting is still valuable in the league today. Currently, the Heat (37.4 3pt%) are the 11th-best three-point shooting team in the league. The addition of Mills should give the team a boost.
Additionally, Mills provides depth and a veteran presence. Currently, the Heat are without guards Josh Richardson and Tyler Herro due to injury. Although both guys are expected to return to action soon, it would be a smart idea for Miami to give them some rest ahead of the postseason. The Heat currently own the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference and will likely at least be a Play-In team this season. Adding Mills gives their backcourt extra insurance as well as his shooting.
Furthermore, Mills adds more championship pedigree to the Heat. Outside of Thomas Bryant and Kevin Love, Mills is the only other player currently on the Heat who has won a title. This type of experience is always valued in the NBA.
What’s Next for Miami?
Despite a rough stretch earlier in the season, the Heat look poised to reach the postseason. Currently, Miami has 22 games left in the regular season. Furthermore, the Heat have the second-easiest schedule remaining for the rest of the season. Recently, Jimmy Butler talked about the team and how he feels about them moving forward:
“You just keep a couple things in your pocket all year long, and whenever you do it at a certain point of the year, they deem it something else like ‘Playoff Jimmy,’” Butler explained. “But it’s just me playing the long game throughout the season. I know that I’m really good at this game, and I know I could do a lot of things well on the basketball court. There are just times when you have to step it up a notch. You can’t show the opponent everything now. You have to always keep people guessing.”
The Heat will be a good team to keep an eye on for the remainder of the season. Additionally, it will be interesting to see if the team can make it to another NBA Finals and get over the hump.
