Photo by: SMC Athletics / Piper Westrom
MBB | Trio of Gaels Alumni Open the Season on NBA Rosters
10/22/2024 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK — The 2024-25 NBA season will open up this evening, which means that in the next 24-48 hours, three former Gaels will have the chance to make their season debuts. Both Jock Landale '18 and Patty Mills '09 are looking to make debuts in their fourth and 16th seasons respectively, while Alex Ducas '24 will look to make his career debut with the Oklahoma City Thunder after signing a two-way contract in July.
After going undrafted this past Summer, Alex Ducas was snagged by Oklahoma City for Summer League play. While he dealt with a hip injury that caused him to miss Summer League game action, Ducas still did enough to earn a two-way contract with the Thunder. Ducas made his preseason debut against the Spurs on October 7, playing 13 minutes off the bench and scoring five points. He played 13 more minutes against the Rockets two days later, burying a three in that one. Ducas had his breakout game of the preseason in a matchup with the New Zealand Breakers, as the Geraldton, West Australia native started, played 36 minutes, and scored 15 points to go along with four rebounds. He had an efficient six minutes in a 30 point walloping of Denver, scoring five points on 50% shooting, and closed out his preseason with 12 minutes of play against the Hawks. Ducas will now open his NBA career along with fellow rookies Dillon Jones (Weber State), Ajay Mitchell (UC Santa Barbara), Alex Reese (Alabama) and Nikola Topic (Serbia). Ducas, Mitchell and second year player Adam Flagler are all on two-way contracts, with a chance to play for the Thunder before the G-League season starts next month. The Thunder open their season on Thursday, taking on the Nuggets in Denver.
Fellow Aussie Jock Landale will enter his fourth NBA season, and his second with the Houston Rockets. Landale has been a regular off the bench for the Spurs, Suns and now Rockets in each of his first three seasons. He's appeared in 179 of 246 games throughout his NBA career, and has averaged six points and three rebounds per contest in that time, and has shot 52% from the field. After a quiet first five months of the season last year, Jock burst onto the scene in March and April, appearing in 23 games and averaging 8.6 points per game while shooting 58.8% from the field. He even picked up his first 20+ point scoring game since his rookie season, scoring 20 on the road in a victory over Portland. Landale appeared in one preseason game this season, scoring two points and reeling in five boards in 19 minutes of play against Oklahoma City. He enters the season competing with Steven Adams for the #2 center role for Houston. Adams missed the entire 2023-24 campaign following PCL surgery. The Rockets open their season on Wednesday, hosting the Hornets.
Rounding out the group is grizzled veteran Patty Mills. Entering his 16th NBA season with his sixth different franchise, Patty Mills will open this year with the Utah Jazz. Mills will serve as a veteran presence on a team with 10 players with 3 or fewer years of NBA experience. Last season, he appeared in just 19 games for Atlanta before being waived and signed a week later by the Miami Heat. There, he appeared in 11 of his first 12 games for the Heat, starting five, and scoring a season high 17 against Portland. He finished out the season appearing in 13 regular season games with the heat, starting five, and averaging six points per contest, and appearing in four postseason games with Miami, averaging five points per game. He appeared in two preseason contests for the Heat, playing a total of 29 minutes against the Blazers and Kings, and shooting 50% from the field. He enters the season as the #2 point guard for Utah, behind Keyontae George. The Jazz open their season on Wednesday, hosting the Grizzlies.
#GaelsRise
After going undrafted this past Summer, Alex Ducas was snagged by Oklahoma City for Summer League play. While he dealt with a hip injury that caused him to miss Summer League game action, Ducas still did enough to earn a two-way contract with the Thunder. Ducas made his preseason debut against the Spurs on October 7, playing 13 minutes off the bench and scoring five points. He played 13 more minutes against the Rockets two days later, burying a three in that one. Ducas had his breakout game of the preseason in a matchup with the New Zealand Breakers, as the Geraldton, West Australia native started, played 36 minutes, and scored 15 points to go along with four rebounds. He had an efficient six minutes in a 30 point walloping of Denver, scoring five points on 50% shooting, and closed out his preseason with 12 minutes of play against the Hawks. Ducas will now open his NBA career along with fellow rookies Dillon Jones (Weber State), Ajay Mitchell (UC Santa Barbara), Alex Reese (Alabama) and Nikola Topic (Serbia). Ducas, Mitchell and second year player Adam Flagler are all on two-way contracts, with a chance to play for the Thunder before the G-League season starts next month. The Thunder open their season on Thursday, taking on the Nuggets in Denver.
Fellow Aussie Jock Landale will enter his fourth NBA season, and his second with the Houston Rockets. Landale has been a regular off the bench for the Spurs, Suns and now Rockets in each of his first three seasons. He's appeared in 179 of 246 games throughout his NBA career, and has averaged six points and three rebounds per contest in that time, and has shot 52% from the field. After a quiet first five months of the season last year, Jock burst onto the scene in March and April, appearing in 23 games and averaging 8.6 points per game while shooting 58.8% from the field. He even picked up his first 20+ point scoring game since his rookie season, scoring 20 on the road in a victory over Portland. Landale appeared in one preseason game this season, scoring two points and reeling in five boards in 19 minutes of play against Oklahoma City. He enters the season competing with Steven Adams for the #2 center role for Houston. Adams missed the entire 2023-24 campaign following PCL surgery. The Rockets open their season on Wednesday, hosting the Hornets.
Rounding out the group is grizzled veteran Patty Mills. Entering his 16th NBA season with his sixth different franchise, Patty Mills will open this year with the Utah Jazz. Mills will serve as a veteran presence on a team with 10 players with 3 or fewer years of NBA experience. Last season, he appeared in just 19 games for Atlanta before being waived and signed a week later by the Miami Heat. There, he appeared in 11 of his first 12 games for the Heat, starting five, and scoring a season high 17 against Portland. He finished out the season appearing in 13 regular season games with the heat, starting five, and averaging six points per contest, and appearing in four postseason games with Miami, averaging five points per game. He appeared in two preseason contests for the Heat, playing a total of 29 minutes against the Blazers and Kings, and shooting 50% from the field. He enters the season as the #2 point guard for Utah, behind Keyontae George. The Jazz open their season on Wednesday, hosting the Grizzlies.
#GaelsRise
Players Mentioned
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