Paris Olympics 2024: Patty Mills leaves extraordinary legacy amid likely final Games performance for Boomers

If this was the last we ever see of Patty Mills in an Australian singlet at an Olympic Games, it was a fitting way to say goodbye. The result wasn’t what the Boomers wanted, but Mills played all the hits as he cemented his status as one of this country’s most beloved athletes. Inspirational leadership. Unrelenting hustle. Sweet shooting. And a never-say-die attitude that has helped this Aussie team of perennial underdogs earn the respect of the basketball world by continually punching above their weight. The final seconds of regulation in Australia’s 95-90 overtime quarter-final loss to Serbia showed the character of the veteran guard, who was once again entrusted with the ball in his hands with his team down by two points and the clock ticking down towards zero. Being guarded by arguably the best player on the planet in three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic thanks to a defensive switch, Mills looked to go to work. His drive to the right was shut down, so he went left. He momentarily lost the handle, so as he recovered the ball near the free-throw line, and having created a fraction of separation from an opponent 23cm taller than him, it was now or never. Swish. Overtime. And another example of the fearlessness and killer instinct when the stakes are at their highest that earned Mills the nickname ‘FIBA Patty’ — to underline the fact that when international competition is underway, things simply hit different for this guy. The numbers speak for themselves. At one point early in the second quarter, Mills was outscoring Serbia by himself — 18 to 17 — as he attacked relentlessly and found his groove in the mid-range to spark hope of an upset. It came amid a game-high 26-point performance that entrenches him among the most prolific scorers in international team play of all time. Only four men have a tally greater than Mills’ 567 points in the history of the Olympics, and the list is a roll call of some of the global game’s most legendary names: Oscar Schmidt, Andrew Gaze, Pau Gasol and Luis Scola. There’ll be time to dissect what went wrong as the Boomers tossed away a 24-point second-quarter lead against Serbia, and there will be even more time across the coming weeks and months to determine what the future of this unit looks like as they lay the initial foundations for the Los Angeles Games in 2028. Five-time Olympian Mills will be on the cusp of turning 40 for that tournament, and barring a miracle, won’t be part of the roster. Neither will Joe Ingles or Matthew Dellavedova, who with Mills formed the leadership core of Australia’s breakthrough bronze medal effort at the Tokyo Olympics that meant so much to the sport in this country. The keys will be handed over to Josh Giddey, the 21-year-old floor general who impressed in Paris but will also be better for the experience at his maiden Games after a string of costly turnovers against Serbia. The likes of Dyson Daniels and Josh Green also underline that there’s a bright future ahead as the golden generation makes way. But the legacy of Mills as Australia’s spiritual leader will long live on in this program. In the nation’s proud sporting history, there’s rarely — if ever — been a player who has lifted so much for his country, time and again, while unashamedly expressing just how much it means to be wearing the green and gold and representing his Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage. “The Olympic Games bring the best out of our people, teams, countries… this is why you play, for these moments,” Mills said after Tuesday’s loss. “The support that’s been there through thick and thin, through the ups and downs… it’s been a long ride. “We’ve learnt a lot about ourselves, and I’ve learnt a lot about myself and what it takes to be an Australian competing for your country. “There’s nothing I enjoy more than that.” Mills departs the Olympic scene with his cherished bronze medal — or ‘rose gold’, as he famously deemed it — but the culture and values that he helped instil among the Boomers set-up won’t soon be forgotten. Brotherhood. Fun. Hard work. And recognising those who have come before us, both on the basketball court and away from the sporting space. Mills may not be wearing a green and gold singlet when Australia’s basketball men finally get their hands on Olympic gold medals. But his fingerprints will be all over them.