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Detroit Pistons' Steve Blake, Anthony Tolliver pursuing new contracts
By David Mayo | dmayo@mlive.com
on April 25, 2016 at 1:07 PM, updated April 25, 2016 at 1:47 PM
AUBURN HILLS -- Steve Blake sat at his locker, quietly reflective, per usual.
Anthony Tolliver stood at his locker, vocally reflective and expansive, per usual.
The Detroit Pistons will undergo more roster makeover this offseason and the two rotation players whose contracts are expiring, Blake and Tolliver, NBA journeymen who have played for eight teams each, are among those facing the most uncertainty.
Blake had a rough series personally in a 4-0 sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers but the backup point guard said he wants another shot.
"I want to play one more year," Blake said after the Pistons' 100-98 loss in Sunday's Game 4 ended their season. "I want to go out there and play 14 years and I think I'll be ready to ride off after that."
Like Blake, Tolliver's contract is up and he is looking for a new deal, perhaps with a new team.
After more games played for Detroit than any other team, 124, the range-shooting power forward prefers to stay.
"Absolutely, I would love to stay here," Tolliver said. "I've been bouncing around a lot in my career. So we're very comfortable here and I feel like what I bring to the table fits what this team needs. But also, having another veteran in the young crowd is a big thing. Hopefully, things can get worked out, and everything works out, that'd be great."
Four non-rotation Pistons, center Joel Anthony, point guards Spencer Dinwiddie and Lorenzo Brown, and rookie shooting guard Darrun Hilliard, are on partially guaranteed or non-guaranteed contracts for 2016-17. The team has business decisions to make in each of their cases, though Hilliard is expected to stay as part of the team's long-term plan.
Blake and Tolliver will be July 1 unrestricted free agents.
"I think about the future, of course. But I don't know what it holds," Blake said. "There are so many moving parts with different teams and stuff. When you're a free agent and you're getting toward the end of your career, you really don't know. Things just happen."
Tolliver is steeped in basketball business. The vice president of the NBA Players Association has a seat on the union board but soon no roster spot.
"Who knows what's going to happen?" Tolliver said. "I've been in this league long enough to know nothing's promised. Obviously, I feel good about my role here and how I love this team in different ways, on and off the court. But at the end of the day, it'll be up to my agent and the team to see if we can't figure something out, and see if we can make it a long-term home."
Tolliver finished up his second season with the Pistons after he was acquired at a turning-point moment in the franchise's history.
Almost simultaneous with the Josh Smith release in December 2014, the Pistons executed a lower-level move, trading Tony Mitchell to Phoenix for Tolliver.
The Pistons were 5-23 at the time they released Smith and acquired Tolliver. They won their next seven games and briefly became the feel-good story in the NBA. Tolliver, who had won his last four games with the Suns before the trade, dubbed it "The Tolliver Effect," and it stuck.
Tolliver made $3 million this year. Blake made $2.17 million.
They are veterans just looking for another deal after upper-crust players finish raiding the vault in what promises to be a topsy-turvy summer with the NBA's exploding salary structure.
The Pistons' bench had a tough series collectively. Only Stanley Johnson and Reggie Bullock were consistently productive offensively and Bullock was injured midway through the series and missed Games 3 and 4.
Tolliver played 26 minutes and the 3-point bomber was 0 of 2 at his specialty. He had seven games this year in which he played more minutes than in the entire Cleveland series.
Blake likewise never reached his 17-minute regular-season average in any postseason game but also had as many turnovers as field-goal attempts in the series, five each. He made his only field goal of the series, a 3-pointer, in the first quarter of Game 4.
It was a frustrating series personally and frustrating for the Pistons that they could not find a winning formula against the East's top-seeded Cavaliers.
"They capitalized on our mistakes in big moments, whether it was an offensive rebound, or making tough shots with guys in their face," Blake said. "It was those little two-minute, three-minute stretches where we lost the game periodically throughout. But we did compete. It was only one game (Game 2) that really got away from us. So it's tough to swallow. But I think it's a good learning experience for everybody."
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Originally Posted by Glanvin Belson
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