For all our Aussie readers, here’s some news on our ballers abroad! 

Pat Mills – Portland Trailblazers, NBA

Patty Cakes has gotten the call-up. Wasting away on the Blazers bench whilst his good friend Rudy Fernandez & rookie Armon Johnson got minutes ahead of him, Patty played 8 minutes today against the Celtics on the road in Boston today. Mike Barrett, broadcaster for the Portland Trailblazers said after the game, ‘We also saw a change in the second unit when Patty Mills got the most significant action of his Blazers’ career.  I have to give it to Mike Rice, who called this following Tuesday’s game.  He said Patty would get his shot, and he did in this game.  He played 8 minutes, recorded a couple of assists, and was solid.  I think we’ll see him continue to get the call for 8 to 12 minutes per game.’ Not to mention zero turnovers. Great to see Patty getting the call up, well deserved!

Andrew Bogut – Milwaukee Bucks, NBA

Bogut sat out of the Bucks game against the Denver Nuggets and the Bucks were beaten comfortably. The Bucks have struggled with injuries to Bogut, Gooden, Delfino & others and whilst the Bogey Man is averaging a double-double and around 2.7 blocks per game, the Bucks are a little underwhelming right now. Hopefully Bogut can recover from his back & neck injuries soon and bring his Aussie toughness to the hardwood.  If Bogut can stay healthy, the guy is an All-Star. 

David Anderson – Toronto Raptors, NBA

Anderson has been traded to the New Orleans Hornets in a 5 player deal that sent Anderson, Jarrett Jack & Marcus Banks to the Hornets in exchange for Peja Stojakovic & Jerryd Bayliss. Anderson isn’t predicted to get many minutes in NO, as the Hornets already have a similar animal in Jason Smith. It’s a shame though, as Anderson was averaging 5 pts & 3 rebs in 13.6 minutes off the bench prior to the trade. Hopefully we see him out on the floor for the Hornets soon!

Nathan Jawai – BT Partisan

Nate is playing for Partisan Belgrade (Serbian League) and in the Adriatic League is averaging 11.3 ppg. Nate had highs of 19 pts & 8 boards against Cedevita. 

More reports to come soon!

We reported a few days ago that Blazers coach Nate McMillan was giving his organisation a 48 hour window to decide on the future of their summer league point guards Armon Johnson and Patty Mills.

Joe Cronin is the official Scout for the Portland Trailblazers, and in a recent article by Blazers edge (a really good interview by the way), Cronin was interviewed by Ben Golliver. 

Patty is still in the running, but the only problem for our Aussie fans is that Armon Johnson is one hell of a player.  Such a shame that two guys at similar stages of their careers, both good people and both quality players are battling it out for the same spot. 

Here’s hoping the Blazers pull off a trade to move Bayless and/or Fernandez to create some space on the roster for both.

Joe Ingles – Golden State Warriors

Joe struggled starting in his first two games, but put up decent numbers (5pts, 4rebs, 2 stls) against Washington. Then only 7 minutes against the Heat, where he didn’t take a shot and picked up just one steal in the stat-column. To the final game of SL against Phoenix where Joe got a DNP – Coaches decision, seemingly now right out of the rotation. Joe is liked by the coaching staff, and works our really well in practice. But just hasn’t transcended that into game-performance at the NBA level. Unfortunately, it’s not likely that Ingles will get a contract with the Warriors.

AJ Ogilvy – Chicago Bulls

AJ was a nice player in college. Had a great demeanour, coaches liked him, and he had the smarts the be effective in a system. But amongst NBA talent, AJ seems a little out of his depth. He just doesn’t have the physical ability of the players around him, and even though he’s only played limited minutes, he’s really not at the same level as the other guys out there. In 14 minutes of action against the Cavs, he pulled down 5 boards (incl. 4 offensive), but was 0-5 shooting. The other games he’s not gotten off the bench much. But in all fairness to AJ – it’s hard to get the minutes and show your wares when there are guys in front of you playing really good ball. Samardo Samuels, Chris Richard & Trent Plaisted are all playing tough, hungry basketball for the Bulls. Summer League is about showing you belong, and you need a certain amount of (we’ll use an Aussie term here) Mongrel to go after it and show the coaches what you’ve got. The guys in front of AJ right now have that, and he doesn’t seem to.

Nathan Jawai – Cleveland Cavs / Charlotte Bobcats

Nate played well off the bench for the Bobcats, but for whatever reason, he didn’t get the minutes with Cleveland. Jawai averaged around 3 points & 3 rebounds in 11 minutes a game off the bench last season for Minnesota before injuring his ankle and then being delegated to the NBA D-League. Charlotte could very well look to pick Nate up, as they have no money, had no draft picks and still need another 2 players to round out their 15 man roster. But if this doesn’t happen, it’s likely that Nate will get another opportunity in the DL. Jawai has all the tools to be a centre in the NBA, so we expect he’ll stay in the system in the NBA & NBDL to keep working towards that goal.

Luke Schensher – Portland Trailblazers

Luke hasn’t really seen any game-time in NBA SL 2010. Would be great to see Luke back on Australian shores for the upcoming NBL season in October, but could also have opportunities in Europe.

Patty Mills – Portland Trailblazers

DAMN! Patty has played some impressive basketball in the 2010 NBA-SL. Spot up threes, jumpers off the dribble, drives to the basket…and don’t forget Patty’s defensive work and his passing. Patty capped off his killer Summer League performance with 18 points & 3 assists on 7/16 shooting, including 4/8 from downtown in 31 minutes of action for the Blazers in an 83-69 win over the Chicago Bulls.  And when you see Patty interviewed after the games, you gotta love hearing that Aussie accent in the NBA environment!  We are hearing that the Blazers are looking to move Rudy Fernandez (who complained publicly numerous times last season about his role or lack thereof in Portland), as they are keen on both Armon Johnson & Patty Mills, but have only one spot left on the roster.  Let’s hope Mills has done enough to show he’s worthy of a spot on the roster.

Let’s take a look at how some of our Aussies are rolling in the NBA Summer League:

Joe Ingles

Joe struggled in his first two games in NBA Summer League action for the Golden State Warriors, with no points against his name.  Joe played over 40 minutes over the two games, shooting 0-6 from the field and pulling down only 3.5 rebounds a game.  He’s been given the minutes, so the coaching staff obviously like him out there and want to see what he can do.  Fortunately, with a move to the bench, Joe came off the bench for the Warriors with 5 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals in 17 minutes, shooting 50%FG.  Joe’s length and quickness caused problems for Washington and he seemed really comfortable in the GSW system.  He also finished the game with +9 in the +/- column, the highest for his team.

Nathan Jawai

Nate has played well in limited minutes for the Charlotte Bobcats Summer League team.  Jawai is in fact, playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers, but has been on loan to the Bobcats.  Jawai has only played 13.8 mins a game, and averaged 4.4pts and 2.4rebs on .638% shooting from the field.  Not outstanding, but given he’s only playing garbage minutes when he’s officially part of another team, Nate has put up decent production in the time he’s been out there.

Pat Mills

Patty is making the Trailblazers look stupid for drafting two point guards.  In his first game in NBA Summer League action in Vegas, Mills finished with 12 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 steal and only 2 turnovers in 26 minutes of gametime.  Patty also shot 5-10 from the field, including 2-5 from three in the Blazers dominating 84-67 win over the Houston Rockets.

There’s alot of talk at the moment around the NBA Free Agency, which other than our own Patty Mills hoping to land another NBA contract, it’s not very Aussie, is it?  So let’s focus on our boys that are over there vying for a spot in the big show, the NBA:

AJ Ogilvy

The Chicago Bulls have kept their Australian representation going with the 6-11 Ogilvy joining them in Las Vegas.  The boy from Castle Hill, Sydney, averaged 13 points and 6 rebounds at Vanderbuilt.  He will join some serious talent on a Bulls team such as John Lucas III, James Johnson, Chris Richard, Morris Almond and Joe Alexander.

Joe Ingles

The 6-8 South Australian small forward will be returning to the USA for Summer League action in 2010.  Ingles with fellow Aussie Brad Newley played for Houston in the NBA Summer League last season.  Ingles is suiting up for the Golden State Warriors in 2010 alongside Anthony Randolph, Reggie Williams, Brandon Wright & draft pick Ekpe Udoh.  Ingles last year worked out great, but didn’t shine in the games.  Here’s hoping another year in the NBL and his recent play against Argentina has put him in a good position to contribute on the NBA hardwood.

Nathan Jawai

‘Nate’ Jawai is listed on the Charlotte Bobcats roster for the Orlando Summer League.  He’ll be competing with other Bigs who have had some NBA time such as Alexis Ajinca, Pape Sow, Shawne Williams & Derrick Brown.  Darius Miles is also slotted into playing on the Bobs summer league team.  The Bobcats need some depth to their roster and are a little thin up front, so a good showing could put Jawai in a good position for an NBA contract by October.

Pat Mills

Patty will suit up for the Portland Trailblazers in Las Vegas.  After losing much of his rookie campaign last season due to a broken foot sustained in training camp, Mills is getting another opportunity in Oregon.  The Blazers have drafted two point guards (Elliot Willams & Armon Johnson), with Johnson also playing in the Summer League.  But after Patty’s 32 point effort last week against Argentina, you can bet he’s just itching to get out there and show the Blazers coaches & front office that he deserves another opportunity in the NBA. 

Luke Schenscher

The 7-1 Schenscher is also suiting up for Portland.  Although Luke getting a run in Portland come season start seems unlikely.