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San Antonio Spurs: Will Patty Mills Fall Out Of The Rotation?

By Andrew Snyder

Apr 1, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills (8) drives to the basket against the Orlando Magic during the second half at Amway Center. San Antonio Spurs defeated the Orlando Magic 103-91. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 1, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills (8) drives to the basket against the Orlando Magic during the second half at Amway Center. San Antonio Spurs defeated the Orlando Magic 103-91. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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A thorough undressing of the Golden State Warriors Sunday night made seven wins in a row for the San Antonio Spurs. Their ascent up the Western Conference standings is not yet finished. Though they are in sixth place, they remain a single game back of the struggling Memphis Grizzlies.

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The last thing San Antonio’s first-round opponent wants is for the Spurs to suddenly steal a home-court advantage that months ago seemed like impossible. Life seems just about perfect in the land of the Alamo. However, they still have some issues that need addressing as the regular season draws to a close.

With the NBA Playoffs less than two weeks away, Gregg Popovich still appears to be tinkering with his bench rotation. Boris Diaw, Marco Belinelli, Aron Baynes, and Manu Ginobili are firmly entrenched in their respective roles, but that tenth spot in the rotation is suddenly up for grabs.

The same question I had back in January still remains unanswered; will Patty Mills or Cory Joseph be the permanent backup point guard? At the time, I assumed that Mills would secure his rightful spot in the rotation as soon as his shoulder was completely healed. That isn’t necessarily the case anymore. As painful as it may be for Spurs fans to admit, the popular gunner has been nowhere close to the player he was last season.

Mills may be playing himself out of the playoff rotation completely. He’s failed to score more than three points in any of his last five games and is shooting 21.1 percent over that span. He has been even worse from three-point range, shooting 1-for-11 over this five-game stretch.

His struggles open the door for Cory Joseph to get the backup point guard job when the postseason arrives. In his last four games Joseph has played 23, 26, 17, and 18 minutes respectively, averaging nearly eight points per game on 56.5 percent shooting.

Over the course of the entire season Joseph has averaged 6.9 points and 2.3 assists per game on 50.3 percent shooting and 35 percent from outside. Not only has Mills played worse than Joseph over the last few weeks, he has been worse the entire season.

He returned much earlier than expected from rotator cuff surgery, but he has not been able to shake off the rust. Mills has played in 46 games, averaging 6.8 points per game, shooting a disappointing 36.9 percent from the field and only 33.5 percent on three-pointers–down from 46.4 percent and 42.5 percent during the 2013-14 season.

Mills played 23 games in the playoffs during last season’s championship run, averaging 7.3 points per game while making 40.5 percent of his three-pointers. His 17-point performance in Game 5 of the NBA Finals helped clinch the series against the Miami Heat and will forever be a part of highlight montages when that moment is fondly revisited.

The idea of a playoff run that sees him only watching from the sidelines must be hard to imagine for Spurs Nation.

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    • At the end of the day it will come down to which player is currently producing. Of course, Mills and Joseph are very different players. Mills is a speedy scorer that can light it up from outside when he gets hot. Joseph is more of a traditional point guard, taking care of the ball and facilitating. Each makes a positive impact on the team when they are on their game, but right now Mills can’t seem to make shots.

    The Spurs no longer have time to hope that he regains the form that made him a key piece during last season’s run to an NBA Championship. Once the playoffs start the rotation will be trimmed and he will either perform or sit the bench.

    Next: NBA Draft: Top 5 Prospects From the National Championship Game

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