Patty Mills to Donate Remaining Salary to Black Lives Matter Organizations

Mills: "I'm playing in Orlando because I don't want to leave any money on the table that could be going directly to Black communities."

Spurs guard Patty Mills announced on Wednesday he will donate the remaining portion of his salary for the 2019-20 season to Black Lives Matter organizations in Australia.

Mills will earn just over $1 million as he finishes the season with the Spurs in Orlando.

"I'm proud to say that I'm taking every cent earned from these eight games that we are playing, which for me will turn out to be $1,017,818.54, and donating that directly back to the Black Lives Matter Australia, Black Deaths in Custody and to a recent campaign, 'We Got You', dedicated to ending racism in sport in Australia," Mills told The Athletic's Shams Charania. "I'm playing in Orlando because I don't want to leave any money on the table that could be going directly to Black communities."

Spurs guard Patty Mills says he is donating his remaining NBA salary of $1,017,818.54 in Orlando to Black Lives Matter organizations. pic.twitter.com/ugPwExNebM

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 8, 2020

The Australian point guard joins a chorus of NBA players looking to support social justice causes in Orlando. Numerous players have opted to replace the name on their jersey with a statement supporting social justice, including Chris Paul, Damian Lillard and Rudy Gobert. The NBA will also paint "Black Lives Matter" on the sidelines of all three courts in Orlando. 

"I’m looking forward to Orlando as an opportunity to be able to launch my mission of race and social justice," Mills said, per the San Antonio Express-News' Jeff McDonald. "I’m very eager, just like I am on the court, to be able to rise to the occasion and make a direct impact.”

Mills is in his 11th NBA season and his ninth with the Spurs. The 31-year-old won the Finals with San Antonio in 2013-14, averaging 10.2 points per game on 42.5% from three. Mills is averaging a career-high 11.7 points per game in 2019-20.