Post by Rog on Sept 18, 2017 1:43:09 GMT
The 90th nominee of the NBN Hall of Fame has seen and done a lot in his 16 seasons in the league. He was a pretty damn good scorer, but was he more than just a good scorer? Did he do enough beyond that one aspect of his game to be considered a Hall of Famer? Lets take a look.
Career Stats
35.2 MPG, 22.4 PPG, 5.1 APG, 3.1 RPG, 1.9 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.7 TOPG on 47.1% from the field, 90.3% from the line, and 42.1% from three
Best Season
Suns(2015) - 31.7 PPG, 7.1 APG, 3.5 RPG, 1.8 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.9 TOPG on 49% from the field, 90.8% from the line, and 46.9% from three
Career Highs
Points: 58
Rebounds: 11
Assists: 18
Steals: 8
Blocks: 3
Achievements
Championships: 1
Player of the Game: 128
Player of the Week: 4
Player of the Month: 0
Double Doubles: 103
Triple Doubles: 0
Awards
2010 - All-Star Rookie Game Participant
Arguments For Induction
- Patty Mills was an absolutely elite scorer for a number of years. He averaged 22.4 points per game for his career. He also averaged 24.8 or better per game for 8 seasons in his career. Those are good as hell numbers. He also did it with incredible efficiency. He shot 47.1% from the field, an absolutely elite number for his career, and that doesn't even show the several years he was over 49%. He finished 32nd all time in points.
- He was also an absolutely elite shooter. Starting off at the line, anytime you shoot over 90% from the line, you're the elite of the elite. And he was also absolutely killer from three. Shooting around 5 and a half threes a game, Mills made 42.1% of them. He had seasons where he shot over 44, like four or five seasons. You could count on Mills for a few things, and knocking down shots at a crazy elite clip was one of them.
- Spending a lot of time at shooting guard throughout his career, he was a good passer there. He averaged over 5 assists per game for his career, and 1.7 turnovers, having seasons under 1 a year as well in there. He did good things with the ball, whether he assisted another teammate or scored it himself, you could count on him to make good decisions.
- He was also a pretty damn good defender. Even towards the end of his career he carried an A- rating defensively. He also averaged 1.9 steals for his career, averaging over 2 steals per game for 8 seasons. He finished his career 29th all time in steals, which is pretty solid for a player known mostly for his offensive game.
- Overall, despite the awards, its an easy case to make for a good scoring, versatile player who played well in FIBA and helped lead Australia to the first FIBA title. He could do just about everything you'd ask for a combo guard who could start at either position. His title with the Rockets really completed his case for me.
Arguments Against Induction
- Look at his awards again, now look here. Now look back up there again. One more time. Does that look like a Hall of Famer? I didn't think so. Stop reading, vote no, say you voted no and move on. Its that simple. Unfortunately I have a job to do and continue this article, but you have no such obligation. You get your $25 no matter how much more you read. Stop here. In fact, before I continue, I'm going to play a song for you that fits the mold.
- Was not an elite offensive player, in any case. Even if he did have some seasons where he was near elite, he wasn't elite overall. His shooting percentages were elite, but he had Mike Miller disease. Shot really well from the field, but not enough volume to be a great overall scorer. Also, when he did play point guard, he was an absolute abysmal passer, not good at all at setting up his teammates. He looked for his shots first and then would pass into a set. He did hold onto the ball well though, true Hall of Famer.
- Was he a good defender? Held a B rating until he was 26, then randomly went to A-. He was good at steals but not elite, and he didn't win any defensive awards in his career. So is that really plus for him here? Don't think so.
- Absolutely abysmal rebounder, no matter where he played. You can't be a Hall of Famer when you were THIS bad at rebounding. 3.1 for his career? Gross.
- Overall, hes not a Hall of Famer. I'm even going to make the typical "overall" paragraph I normally finish with. Simple, hes not a Hall of Famer. Period.
Vote carefully, and remember to throw out arguments regardless of which side you're on. This should be a discussion that eventually gets the league to the proper decision on him. Your vote can also be retracted after it's been cast if you feel like switching to the other side based on the arguments that have been made. To be inducted, a player needs 70% and to be considered in a later class they need 50%. Vote carefully.
***BONUS - Don't forget that everyone who votes gets $25 and the person that makes the best argument or contributes to the discussion the best will be awarded an extra $25***
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