Mills fell awkwardly to the floor in a first-quarter confrontation, with Green grabbing the point guard around the neck in a seatbelt-style sling just minutes into the Heat's game against the Warriors.

"Looks like they're going to call it on Draymond Green," the ESPN commentator said.

"And boy oh boy did he grab Patty Mills. It looked like by the throat. Watch what he does to Patty Mills, holds him back by the throat. That will be reviewed for sure."

The Warriors went on to record a 19-point win, but it was the start of an eventful 24 hours for Green. In the next game against the Orlando Magic, Green was ejected in the first quarter after a running battle with referee Ray Acosta.

The incidents have prompted calls for Green to be suspended again. He missed 12 games in December for hitting Phoenix centre Jusuf Nurkic in the face. He also missed five games in November after putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold.

In the clash against the Heat, he took on the much smaller Mills and was called up immediately. Mills moved to block Green's path when the Warriors champion grabbed Mills around the neck and pulled him backwards.

The incident was a blip in the radar in Mills' new opportunity in Miami. After spending most of the season on the bench at the Atlanta Hawks, the 35-year-old has played a bigger role since joining the Heat.

He played just 19 of 60 games in his stint at Atlanta. He has featured in all 10 of Miami's games since making the move, averaging 16 minutes and 5.2 points per game.

"I think where I'm at in my career and what I've already been able to accomplish, being a part of a culture like this, a winning environment, one goal in mind and understanding that the different aspects of people playing their part, playing their role to be able to achieve the goal, that's definitely the backbone for me and what I've come from and what my values are," Mills said earlier this month

"I think there's a lot of values there that realign with what the culture is here."

"I think where I'm at in my career and what I've already been able to accomplish, being a part of a culture like this, a winning environment, one goal in mind and understanding that the different aspects of people playing their part, playing their role to be able to achieve the goal, that's definitely the backbone for me and what I've come from and what my values are," Mills said.

"I think there's a lot of values there that realign with what the culture is here."

The revival has come at the perfect time for Mills, who is hoping to go to his fifth Olympic Games in Paris later this year.

The Heat, beaten in the Finals last season, view Mills as adding crucial winning experience to their roster for another title bid.

Australian Boomers coach Brian Goorjian, who had already tried to regenerate the side by omitting fellow core members Matthew Dellavedova and Aron Baynes from last year's World Cup squad, said Mills needed to prove themselves to be there again in Paris.

"Correct; there's a time frame on it and it's nearing that," Goorjian said.

"The World Cup, we have to move forward from that. Take steps. There were some tough decisions last time and some things under the microscope again. I'm happy Patty's at Miami; that'll help him as opposed to no minutes.

"But those guys in the NBA aren't dominant, they're just pieces. When you bring it in with 18, 19 guys playing in Asia and the NBL (to selection camp) it's going to be really competitive.

"Guys like Patty and Joe [Ingles], the reality is Father Time's approaching and there's going to be a battle there."

Anna Meares predicts Lauren Jackson's Paris presence would send the Australian Olympic team giddy, after the door was left ajar for the Opals great to feature in a fifth Games.

Jackson announced her retirement in February after helping Australia qualify for the Paris Games in July, when the Hall of Famer and 2006 World Cup winner will be 43.

But on Wednesday the mother of two was included in Sandy Brondello's 26-strong squad that will be whittled to 12 after a training camp and as many as 10 pre-Olympic fixtures.

Jackson had spoken of the "mum guilt" and heartbreak of leaving her children at home while she competed.

The single mother told the Nine Network an Olympic campaign was out of the question unless Basketball Australia (BA) helped cover the cost of travelling with her two boys, aged five and seven.

A BA spokesperson said the agreement remained confidential, but that it prided itself on being a family-friendly organisation and had historically prioritised similar requirements for mothers to ensure optimal performance.

Two-time track cycling gold medallist and mother-of-two Meares will act as Australia's chef de mission in Paris.

"She's a great legend of sport, let alone Australian basketball, and has been very clear that her participation in Paris is pertinent to her sons being OK about her competing and the impact on them," the 40-year-old said.

"She's a remarkable role model on so many levels, and me being a young mother, I know the guilt that it takes to have a young family and have to commit to work and travel.

"It's amazing what the presence of a great like Lauren would do [in the Olympic village] ... just seeing them inspires you and you also get a bit giddy.

"It's important for my daughter and son to see me working hard towards something I love and am passionate about."

Jackson has won four Olympic medals, including silver at three consecutive Games, starting with Sydney in 2000 when she competed as a teenager.

Paris would be her first Games since 2012, a debilitating knee injury forcing her into retirement ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

She made a shock return to lower-tier basketball in 2022 and earned selection in Australia's World Cup later that year, starring in the bronze medal game.

Jackson, who had surgery on a ruptured achilles last year, returned from Brazil's qualifying tournament and led her Southside Flyers into the WNBL grand final series with a 38-point, 11-rebound semi-final display.

The Flyers went on to win the title, 25 years after Jackson's first.

Brondello said the ball was now in Jackson's court to be part of a team she thinks can win gold.

"In the end Lauren has to make that decision and we'll support it 100 per cent," she said.

"We've been in big moments, and that experience helps."

The world No.3 Opals missed the medal rounds in Tokyo, but Brondello is confident their versatility, experience and some fresh faces will have them better equipped this time.

"I feel good about this team, but we have to go out there playing our best in Paris," she said.

"I'm excited about it."

The Olympic draw, conducted last week in Switzerland, has the Opals grouped in Pool B alongside Canada, Nigeria and host nation France.