Humpday: Mills To Pay The Bills
Humpday: Mills To Pay The Bills
New guard Patty Mills may have a larger role than most realize on the Utah Jazz, and BYU linebacker Fred Warner is off to a red-hot start after the second pick-six of his storied NFL career.
BREAKING NEWS» The Utah Jazz didn’t get any better this offseason was the refrain commonly heard around the state.
I say: Heard of Patty Mills? The Aussie guard [above] signed with the Jazz in late August, giving Utah a backcourt leader who can be that steadying influence alongside hotshots like Brice Sensabaugh, Isaiah Collier, Cody Williams and rising star Keyonte George.
Granted, the Jazz didn’t get themselves a “big-name, big-game superstar,” per se. But they did nab the extroverted Mills in the free-agent market following the Paris 2024 Olympics [his Australian Boomers were knocked out at the quarterfinal stage.]
That opened the door to entice Mills, who as it turns out was first welcomed by Will Hardy when the Jazz head coach was still an assistant on the San Antonio Spurs.
“He was the first person who opened the door to me when I got to the [San Antonio] Spurs at 9 p.m.,” said Mills of Hardy. [Mills current deal with the Jazz is for one year and $3.3 million.]
For Mills, this is a chance for the Aboriginal to get back to his old hooper ways when he averaged 11 points/game in the 2021-22 season with Brooklyn. For those who say it can’t be done, I say look no further than Ricky Rubio, another guard from days gone by who enjoyed a career resurgence when he arrived here. Another would be Jordan Clarkson, who remains a Jazzman—for now.
Side note» The Jazz also grabbed Svi Mikhailiuk and signed him to a four-year, $15 million deal in August. He scored one point and averaged one rebound in 41 games for the Celtics last season. That said, the Jazz are hopeful that the Kansas Jayhawk will return to the basket-getting ways he had in 2022-23 when Svi averaged 11 points, three rebounds and three assists as a member of the Bobcats.
Back to the story: for Mills, the 14-year NBA veteran comes to Utah having won an Olympic medal and an NBA title, and according to Coach Hardy will be placed in charge of Utah’s plethora of young guards, teaching them the ropes. That starts with the Jazz’ preseason opener vs. the New Zealand Breakers, this Friday night at Delta Center.
“This is really an opportunity to invest in our youth; we have six players that are 20 and under,” said Coach Hardy. “We’re really excited about all of them.”
Right Said Fred Warner
Some people say » Fred Warner has not been a legacy type of NFL player. When Warner saw the play unfold this past Sunday and timed the throw New England Patriots QB Jacoby Brissett was about to make, it wasn’t the first time the BYU product read such a play down to the most minute detail.
Warner said: let’s give credit where it’s due—to his San Francisco 49ers teammates.
“I’m excited to go back and see the effort that my guys were giving,” said Warner of his pick six in the 49ers 30-13 win over New England Sunday. “And, to get blocks. You don’t get in the end zone unless you have your teammates having your back in that situation.”
His 49ers teammates also had Warner’s back, so to speak, back in 2019 in this cool little video, marking the second time in the BYU legend’s seven-year career that he’s had a pick-six.
The other thing worth mentioning is that Warner, who left the game late in the first half with a high ankle sprain, is already halfway [two] to his career-high 4 interceptions that he set last season. Just saying.
Also, Taysom Hill had two tuddies but his New Orleans Saints team lost, 26-24 this past Sunday to Atlanta, which also featured another BYU alum in Tyler Allgaier [he had eight carries for 64 yards rushing]. In this week’s BVU Show, I talk plenty about Hill and other local college/pro players:
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In other news …
Boy, Utah State’s got its hands full this weekend on the blue in Boise …
Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty [above] is a legit Heisman Trophy candidate who barreled over a good Washington State team for nearly 260 yards rushing this past week. Though Utah State has yet to play to its full potential, and had moments at home versus Utah, this is make-or-break for the 1-3 Aggies, who need this victory to keep their postseason bowl hopes in sight and galvanize a fanbase still celebrating the program’s move to the Pac-12 [in 2026].
And, congrats to the Utah Hockey Club who is now 4-1 in the preseason as well as a Real Salt Lake squad that officially qualified for the Western Conference Playoffs.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
[All games Saturday unless noted]
Utah State at No. 21 Boise State; Weber State at Montana; Tarleton State at SUU; Utah Tech at North Alabama
BVU NFL Fantasy League Week 3
» I won again. I'm not sure how, but I'll take it. Meanwhile, Heather won and Daniel's son won also, leaving four 2-2 teams after four weeks of action.
Got some weird and/or interesting Utah-related story? Email me.
BoOk. Em. BrIaN!
I read a lot of books. Some are sports-related, some not. Some are great; some aren’t. This one, however, was worth its price:
THE ROAD TO OMAHA By RYAN MCGEE, 308 pages
» … This book was everything the last book I read was not. It had interesting content; for example, did you know that the great Bob Gibson hails from Omaha, Nebraska—and so do several other baseball Hall Of Famers? Omaha [and Council Bluffs, Iowa across the Missouri River] set the scene for that most American sporting event: the College World Series. It had that slice of Americana [actually, it had many slices]; and delivered that oomph that I longed for in the last baseball book I read. It had teams that were two-n-cue [a unique, yet dignified way of celebrating schools swept in its first two games] and it had Miami’s Ron Fraser, a very colorful manager. In this book, Ryan McGee also wrote about many of college baseball’s—and, baseball’s—storied traditions, such as Stanford’s Sunken Diamond as well as LSU’s yearly pilgrimage to Omaha, come hell or high water—literally. He also writes about the Arizona State program that made Barry Bonds great and the Fresno State Bulldogs that stunned everyone by winning the 2008 national title on its fourth [and, to this date, last] attempt.
So many of these places McGee outlines in his book are bucket list items for yours truly; there literally is nothing like college baseball on the planet, and though some of the great traditions that make baseball America’s pastime are no longer with us, the memories are. Honestly, that’s what makes McGee’s book so good; he takes the time to get to know the people who not only play in the actual games that inhabit Omaha for 10 days every year—he goes behind the scenes to show us how this poetry is made in & around the place they call The Blatt.
[On Amazon and other sites]
What Are We DOING?!?
I don’t know who came up with this bright idea, but who gets ready for a fight against Mike Tyson looking this out of shape?!
Dude’s got an orange glow. Is he pregnant?
Vote for the wackiest What Are We Doing. Last week’s winner: the idiot Kansas State fan making that burrito bet by a landslide.
Thanks for reading; be safe and be well and I’ll see ya next time.