Patty Mills may have played his last game for the San Antonio Spurs with the Canberra-born point guard set to command a $US10 million price tag on the NBA's free agency market.
Mills is set to bolster his back pocket after he became an unrestricted free agent following San Antonio's elimination from the NBA western conference finals at the hands of the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors thumped the Spurs 129-115 in San Antonio to sweep the series and book a place in the NBA finals for the third straight season.
Golden State will meet the winner of the eastern conference finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, and a date against the former would mark their third straight meeting in the finals.
The loss brought down the curtain on Mills' three-year $US13 million Spurs contract, with some NBA executives believing he could earn between $US12-18 million when his next deal kicks in.
It remains to be seen whether a tough outing in the western conference finals could have an impact on Mills' price, after he missed nine of his 13 field goal attempts and struggled to contain Warriors star Stephen Curry in game four.
But the 28-year-old is coming off the best regular season of his career with an average of 9.5 points and 3.5 assists per game that could see him rise up the list of Australia's richest athletes.
But Mills wouldn't delve into contract talks post-match with his immediate focus on finding some good food and wine to help digest San Antonio's season-ending loss.
"Deciding where to eat tonight, whoever has the best wine I guess, I'll start there," Mills said.
Mills has made the playoffs in each of his eight seasons in the NBA since joining the Portland Trailblazers in the 2009-10 season, and won a championship with the Spurs in 2014.
His experience in the business end of the season makes him an enticing product for rival teams with the likes of the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves shaping as potential new homes.
If Mills joins Philadelphia, who have some room to move in the salary cap, he would link up with highly regarded No. 1 draft pick and fellow Australian Ben Simmons.
The Timberwolves have plenty of cap space and Mills could fill a void at the Target Center with Minnesota in need of three-point scorers.
Mills isn't the only Spurs star with a decision to make about his future with speculation mounting about NBA legend Manu Ginobili's possible retirement.
Ginobili got a standing ovation when he made his way to the bench late in the game against the Warriors, prompting his close mate Mills to ask "what are all these people standing up for?"
"I don't know why we do [have such a close relationship]. He's so much older than me, it's weird. It's like grandpa and grandson but still very close," Mills said.
"We'll see what he does but it's been a great learning curve for me to grow under him. I've learnt so much from him on the court, and more importantly for me, off the court.
"It's one of those friendships that will go on for years beyond basketball. When it's all said and done and when you hang the boots up that's the thing you take away the most.
"Whatever he decides, it's up to him but I feel like I haven't taken anything for granted since playing with him and I've appreciated every day."
Injured Spurs stars Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker finished the season from the bench but there is no shame in bowing out to the Warriors and Mills says "they showed us what a championship team looks like".
