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Saint Mary's Legend Patty Mills Takes GM Role at Surprising College Hoops Program

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Andy Patton | Last updated Jun 12, 2025 6:13 PM ET

Outside of head coach Randy Bennett, no one put Saint Mary's basketball on the map quite like superstar guard Patty Mills.

Mills spent two years in Moraga, averaging 18.4 points, 3.9 assists, and 2.2 steals as a sophomore, leading the Gaels to a 28-7 record back in 2008-09. He went on to have a prolific NBA and international career, and his arrival in Moraga solidified an Australian pipeline that coach Bennett still takes advantage of to this day.

So when it was announced on Monday that Mills was going to become the general manager at a college hoops program, everyone assumed it would be at Saint Mary's.

Instead, Mills will take the role at Hawaii, providing a nice lift for the Rainbow Warriors as they get set to join the Mountain West starting in 2026.

BREAKING: NBA Champion & FIBA legend Patty Mills has officially agreed to become the General Manager for #HawaiiMBB.@HIsportsradio @SportingTrib
— Paul Brecht (@12brecht) June 9, 2025

Mills may not have gone to Hawaii, but he's a longtime Oahu resident during the offseason. The 6'0 guard is also a passionate community figure on Oahu's North Shore, which included sponsoring the inaugural Patty Mills North Shore Classic, a four-team tournament hosted in Laie, where Hawaii clinched the title back in 2022.

Mills played 16 seasons in the NBA and was a fixture on the Australian Boomers, representing his country since 2007. That included being a captain in 2020 and setting an Olympic medal game record with 42 points in a bronze medal victory over Luka Doncic and Slovenia.

General Manager is a growing position in college athletics, with Shaquille O'Neal (Sacramento State) Adrian Wojnarowski (St. Bonaventure) and Jim Tanner (North Carolina) among recent hires into this position.

As of this writing, neither Gonzaga or Saint Mary's have a GM publicly on staff.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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