FIBA World Cup 2023: Patty Mills is more than just Australia's captain and guard - he is their soul
Two summers after leading the Boomers to their first-ever Olympic medal, the 35-year-old veteran has his country on track towards the podium top on basketball's biggest stage.
Basketball
When Patty Mills speaks, people listen. Be it his team-mates. The media. The fans in global basketball.
To sum it up in so many words, it's because he has character. And his gravitational pull is a huge reason why Australia's men are considered one of the favourites at FIBA World Cup 2023.
“It’s a tough loss, you never want to lose like that,” Mills said, ahead of the Boomers’ 109-89 Group E victory over Japan on Tuesday (29 August) that came two days after a stinging 85-82 loss to Germany.
“There are a lot of positives from that game that we can learn about ourselves, learn about our approach to (the Japan game) and moving forward.
“It’s one of those things that we put into the bank, understanding what we can gain from it.
“Our goal doesn’t change. The vibe between the group remains the same and what we’re here to do. We’re just learning as we go and adapting as we move forward.”
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Australia’s losing to Germany, coupled with Japan’s win against Finland, suddenly had them on the brink of not advancing to the second round.
There was no question Australia were the superior team but given the occasion - all the pressure was on Australia, and co-hosts Japan were on a high following their first World Cup win in 17 years - it was perfectly natural for doubt to seep in.
But Mills made sure it didn’t. Australia had been plagued by slow starts in their recent games but against Japan, Brian Goorjian’s men were locked in right from tip-off and never trailed until the final buzzer.
There was a sense of belief and determination amongst them, stemming from the culture that Mills has helped cultivate, ever since making his national team debut in 2007.
Australia’s next obstacle in the second round will be Luka Doncic and Slovenia in a rematch of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic bronze-medal game, in which Mills scored 42 points to lead his country to the podium for the first time ever in men’s basketball.
Without a doubt, a Slovenian team featuring one of the best players in the world will be a more formidable proposition than Japan.
Yet you can be sure that Mills, again, will keep Australia together and focused until the mission is complete in Manila on 10 September.
“We set our goal early on and this is on the back of the Tokyo Olympics, coming here, understanding what our clear goal is.
“We put a lot into our culture and understanding the identity of our group, and that each person has an important role in that identity. So nothing here changes for us.
“We also understand that this is the World Cup and nothing is going to be handed to us on a silver plate.
“It’s going to be hard, everyone is going to give it his best shot. That pressure, we welcome. We understand what’s at stake here. That’s World Cup basketball.
“There’s no doubt in my mind our time is now and that’s what we believe in the locker room, in our group.
“Now it’s time for us to put it all on the line for these next few weeks.”