5 Hawks who won’t be on the roster beyond the trade deadline
By Tyler Watts
3. Patty Mills
Mills was traded three times this summer before landing in Atlanta. The 35-year-old guard will backup Trae Young to start the season but is arguably the easiest player to move on the Hawks cap sheet. He is in the final year of his contract making $6.8 million. Mills is the perfect salary filler in a multi-player deal or straight dump if the Hawks are looking to save a bit of cash.
The 6’1 guard is coming off a down season, and it is fair to question how much he has left in the tank. Mills turned 35 in August and is about to start his 15th NBA season. He only played in 40 games and was out of the rotation by the playoffs last year. Does he bounce back or was it the beginning of the end for the veteran guard?
The Hawks will look to move on if his play does not improve. Expect general manager Landry Fields to include him in any deal to make the math work out. Atlanta may just buy him out before March if he is not part of the rotation.
Patty Mills won a championship with the Spurs in 2014 and was a productive role player in the NBA for more than a decade. There is zero knocking his legacy, but the veteran must prove he can still play or the Atlanta Hawks have to send him packing.