Top 99 Quotes & Sayings by Patty Mills

When fans say 'Bala,' that's cultural awareness to me. I hope I've helped open up their world a little.

People talk about the Spurs and how we do a decent job at playing basketball. But there is a deeper meaning to who we are, where we come from, and at the same time, why we play basketball.

For me, running the point, it's good and that's where I feel comfortable the most.

Learning about our past is definitely important, not only for Australians but people around the world. It's something that Australia should never be ashamed of. It's part of our history. It's part of us.

Just try to make an impact on the game somehow whether it is on the defensive or offensive end. I think that has always been something that I have hung my hat on especially offensively. If it is not the night, then go make a play defensively and get after, dive for loose balls, create a charge, make an impact that way.

I'll always say this: my name is Patrick Mills, I'm a Kokatha man from South Australia, and I'm a Naghiralgal and Dauareb-Meriam man of the Torres Strait Islands.

I realize how rare it is for someone like me to reach this level. So I'm using my stature in basketball to help other people. I'm more than happy to do it.

There's a part of me that's very stereotypically Australian, with the lingo, or for lack of a better way of putting it, the way white Australians would speak. And then, Oh, that's not all I am.

It goes without saying that there is a significant gap between the NBA and Basketball Australia in terms of catering to the players' needs so that we can perform at a high level night in, night out.

My game isn't defined by points, it's more.

For me, being able to be prepared for a lot of things is something I take pride in.

Now that I get a chance on the big stage, it's even more important to remember where I came from.

I'm deeply connected to both sides of my family in ways that I'm not sure I can get across, in ways that many people will never understand.

I'll start by saying that our motto that we were living by was 'gold vibes only,' and yes, our goal is to win gold. We're at the Olympics, that's what everyone's goals and dreams should be. If you don't have that goal set out for yourself as a team, as individuals, then what are you doing here?

It has nothing to do with money. We don't play for Australia to get paid. We play for the pride of our country and the opportunity to create history and be the best team in the world.

Having the trust and respect from your teammate is where it starts and that is getting to know guys off the court, even before basketball.

If there's something I believe is right, I back myself.

You have games when you miss shots and when you make shots. But knowing you're here for a reason and you're an NBA basketballer helps.

I made the team for the 2008 Olympics and you're playing the U.S.A. in the quarter-finals and it's like, this is awesome, this is a great feeling. We lose the game. And as a young kid like you don't understand really what that means, you just got your backside handed to you by all-time greats.

I'm not a good outdoor shooter, I've come to realize.

My motivation for helping is that I come from a culture that isn't given a lot of opportunity.

It's a competitive fire underneath me that welcomes the spotlight, welcomes those big moments.

I appear African-American, so it's not until I start talking that people go, 'Hold on, there's something not right here.' But it's an awesome conversation starter. I open my mouth, they get curious, and I say, 'Got a few minutes? Have a seat.'

I go about my craft as a professional and learn ways to get better, trying to carry myself in a way that I think can inspire others.

I have been instilled with culture from such a young age that I know who I am, and I know once sporting is out of the picture, I will have this to come back to and continue the customs and traditions that I've been taught.

The early adolescence years are crucial for a child's cognitive, emotional and social development.

You have to be able to reach for the moon. You have to be able to have those sort of goals.

If you take control of yourself and you make the right cut or the right screen, then something good will come out of it.

Giving back to your community - we've done that forever, that's nothing new.

I think it's important for everyone to understand that if you have a background and culture... to really use that as motivation to fuel the fire. It brings meaning to what you do. It's not just sports - whether it's in the classroom, in the office or whatever it may be - it just brings passion and excitement out when there's meaning behind it.

I think an all-around type of mentality is the thing that I have tried to have always. I am not too happy with myself when I start to float around and just be out there.

Being Australian is a lot more than saying 'g'day mate' and 'throw a shrimp on the Barbie.'

We're not America. We are our own country, and we have our own issues.

Basketball as a sport has brought me happiness, joy, education and a real sense of purpose.

I had a roommate who refused to believe that there were black people from Australia and that I just had this accent. I got frustrated. I'm saying, 'mate, you've never heard of Aboriginals?' And he definitely never heard of the Torres Strait Islands.

It's good to be taken out of your comfort zone - it's part of the NBA grind - a challenge I'm ready for.

Things are bigger than basketball. The Spurs are great at helping you know that you're not just at the gym every day to throw a ball around, but you're here to represent.

That's an exciting feeling to know when you walk in the gym, or in the weight room, it's for a championship.

We play the right way at the Spurs. We don't go about business the wrong way, we play hard and represent the Spurs the best way we can.

People ask when I was younger in the league who my favourite player was to play against and it was Steve Nash. It wasn't necessarily that I was guarding him or he was guarding me it was more so getting to see up close and personal how he plays and how he approached the game. That was very exciting for me.

Learn that you can stand up for who you are, stand up for your heritage and be proud.

It's super exciting just to know you're in a position where you're playing for something each and every day.

I want to help educate. I want to show how you can stand strong without anger. Taking the high road.

My connections and roots to this land of Australia - the sea, the reefs, the sky, the stars - come from a time and place that existed long before basketball was invented, and definitely long before the Boomers program was created.

I've grown a lot in my time in San Antonio, both on and off the court, and probably off the court most importantly.

When something happens - good, bad or ugly - you find a way to be able to do your part for your community. How do you better the lives of Indigenous people, how do you give back to the land, how do you stay connected? All of this is the same question.

My heritage and my culture and where I'm from mean the most to me, more than anything,.

My life is going from journey to journey, mate.

The values I have as a person are the same as the whole Spurs organisation and that's why it feels like home.

There's no running water in a remote Aboriginal community? I can do something about that, let's go do it. I've been brought up that way. So political activism, is it that? I don't know, because that's not what makes me go, 'yeah let's do this now.'

Our leadership group has a responsibility to pass on what it means to be a Boomer and play for your country and make sure this program is at its peak knowing the type of talent coming through.

To continue my efforts as a leader for my people and to follow my family's legacy of providing legitimate opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through my sport of basketball is the true outcome of my personal success and accomplishments.

It's about finding the chemistry on the court and where you can get to your spots and where you can find open ones.

Australia is a great country. America is a great country. We all have issues and different aspects.

When it comes to the green and gold, the passion starts pouring out from me to be able to create something special in that basketball space for our country. I'm absolutely dialled in when it comes to that.

I ran track, and my pet event was the 400 meters, and I wanted to be like Cathy Freeman.

It's hard to guard when you have two point guards on the floor because you don't know who to pick up.

I feel a responsibility to not only live up to expectations, but the standard of which the likes of Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili have set for us.

Playing basketball is fun, and I love it and I enjoy it every day.

San Antonio is more of a home than anything to be honest. They saw me as a huge part of their organisation to continue this Spurs culture and that's nice to know, and that's something I'm really keen to do.