Jazz's Patty Mills Sounds Off on His Debut Preseason Appearance

The newly added veteran made his Utah Jazz debut on Tuesday.
Oct 15, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Patty Mills (8) reacts to a play against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Oct 15, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Patty Mills (8) reacts to a play against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images / Rob Gray-Imagn Images
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During Tuesday night's Utah Jazz preseason contest against the Sacramento Kings, we finally got an opportunity to see offseason addition Patty Mills in uniform for the first time after missing out of the action for their first four showings.

And when asking the 36-year-old vet on how things went, he seems to enjoy how the outcome transpired.

The media caught up with Mills during the Jazz's Wednesday practice to discuss some thoughts on his first time getting back on the floor this season.

"Last night, for me, was good," Mills said. "Felt great. My legs were under me, lungs were good. I think, overall, just had so much fun being out there on the floor with these guys. I woke up this morning after a good meal, and I felt good."

Mills finished the night playing 19 minutes, ultimately posting five points and two rebounds of 2/3 shooting from the field. He comes off of last season appearing for both the Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat, and now enters a new situation in Utah to be a key veteran mentor for this roster's youth movement.

"We've got such a great group of young talent," Mills continued. "[They have] eagerness to learn, work ethic, getting better, but then [show] a lot of things about keeping it light and enjoying the moment too. That's a really important learning lesson I've learned over my time is about being in the moment, enjoying that time, and not trying to get too far ahead of yourselves and live in the past. So, that was for me last night what I tried to do, and loved every minute of it."

Mills, alongside other Jazz veterans like Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, and Lauri Markkanen, will be key in this roster's development of young talent. And with all of them seemingly excited and ready to take on their roles as leaders of this group, this squad should be in good hands as we roll into the quickly approaching regular season.

Mills and the rest of this roster will get one last shot to suit up during the Jazz's set of six preseason games on Friday when they travel to take on the Portland Trail Blazers at 8 PM MT.


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Jared Koch
JARED KOCH

Jared Koch is the Associate Editor of The Frozen Rope — SI.com's team website covering the Utah Jazz. He's covered the NBA and NFL for the past two years, also being the Managing Editor of Inside The Kings — SI.com's team website covering the Sacramento Kings.