CLEVELAND, OH – APRIL 20: LeBron James
With the Detroit Pistons bringing back fan favorite Anthony Tolliver, we take a look back at the most popular Pistons bench players of the last 17 years.
There has always been something special about a good Pistons bench player. The ‘Bad Boys’ had legends like Mark Aguirre, Dennis Rodman, John Salley, Vinnie ‘The Microwave’ Johnson, and James Edwards riding the pine.
That ‘Boy Boys’ roster managed to bring two NBA championships to Detroit, but the franchise faced a decline after being swept by the Chicago Bulls in the ’91 Eastern Conference Finals. Starting in the ’91-’92 season, the franchise failed to make it past the first round of the playoffs for the next 10 seasons. Much of this time was composed of the often maligned “Teal Era.”
In the year 2000, Detroit switched their jerseys back to their classic blue and red, and the following year they hired Rick Carlisle as head coach. That season, 2001-2002, the Pistons finally managed to make it past the first round of the playoffs, defeating the Toronto Raptors. This is where we will start our list of iconic Detroit bench players, right after some honorable mentions….
Honorable Mentions
Boban Marjanovic – If Boban saw the court more last season, I would’ve put him on this list simply for becoming something of a cult hero in the city of Detroit. We didn’t see much of Boban last year, as he was buried on the Pistons’ bench. But when we did get to watch Boban work, he did not disappoint. These sporadic scoring outbursts were enough to whip Pistons’ fans into a frenzy throughout the season.
It remains to be seen if we will see more of Boban this season or not. Based on the current roster, Boban is slotted to become the backup center. However, while he is a very fun offensive force to watch, there are reasons he played limited minutes last season.
No matter what happens with Boban Marjanovic in the future, I think he will always be remembered fondly by fans for his scoring barrages. This is certainly a huge year for the big man, but his teammates’ think he’s up for the challenge.
Darko Milicic – Okay, before fans start ripping me apart in the comments section, please don’t forget that this is the ‘Honorable Mentions’ section, not the ‘Mentions’ section. I had a reason for inserting him into this section, and that reason was entirely the excitement fans had for this guy.
Yes, many of you may deny it now, but I know that most of you reading this were just as excited for this pick as I was, and I don’t think we were wrong for having that excitement. He was the No. 2 pick in the 2003 NBA Draft for a reason, after all. So, before we look back in hindsight on hate on Darko Milicic too much, let’s remember that he was a great prospect.
Many of us yearned to see him on the court for even a few minutes during his two-and-a-half years with the Pistons, and that shouldn’t be discounted.
It’s also worth noting that there are those who actually blame Larry Brown for Darko’s hindered development. It is pretty rare for a No. 2 draft pick to join a title contender like the Pistons, and the organization may not have handled his growth as a pro correctly. However, in what I thought was a classy statement, Darko denied this theory, and placed the blame squarely on his shoulders.
Corliss Williamson – ‘Big Nasty’ spent time with the Pistons from 2000 up until they won the Finals in ’04. I will always remember his patented hook shot; I used to practice that in the gym as a kid.
Corliss was 6’7″, 245 pounds and all muscle. He was too strong for small forwards and too quick for traditional power forwards at the time. He also had a highly-skilled post game in his arsenal. This made him a tough cover off the bench, and for two years he was one of the team’s most reliable scorers on the roster.
He was also mean, intense, and just nasty (hence the nickname) on the floor. His attitude not only fit in with the great Pistons’ bench players of lore, but also really helped the team get their edge back.
In the 2001-02 season, he put up an impressive 13.6 points and 4.2 rebounds off the bench. That performance helped him beat out Bobby Jackson from the Kings and Quentin Richardson of the Clippers to earn the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year Award.
His tenure with the team didn’t last long. Williamson still had three years worth $18 million left on his contract, a small fortune for a bench player in 2004.
The Pistons had to free up salary in the short-term if they wanted to keep the bulk of their core intact, so they opted to trade ‘Big Nasty’ to the Sixers in what was ultimately a salary shedding transaction.
Jon Barry – One of the four basketball-playing sons of NBA legend Rick Barry, Jon wasn’t the star that his father was, or even his brother Brent. However, he is a player that gave many Pistons’ fans nights to look back at fondly with his hustle and excellent three-point shot.
For newer fans, Jon Barry isn’t just another Steve Blake type off the bench; he had some real skills. If you don’t believe me, check out this highlight video someone (hilariously) took the time to put together:
Jon only spent two seasons with the Pistons, but was a key member in the Rick Carlisle transition, contributing to the Pistons’ resurgence as a playoff team. He only missed 2 games during that span, averaging a scorching 43.8 percent on three-pointers during his time with the team.
In what was arguably his most memorable game as a Piston (or in his career), Barry lit up the Raptors in the first round of the 2002 Playoffs. Jon Barry scored 12 points in three minutes, helping the Pistons move past the first round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in ten years. Check out this Sportscenter recap of the game to hear what had to be the most times his name was ever mentioned on ESPN as a player in the same segment:
Elden Campbell – In case you didn’t who Elden Campbell is, he is the man that looks like he’s about to murder Tony Parker in the photo above. Do you need another reason for him to be on the list? Fine, here’s this clip of him bringing the Palace crowd to their feet in the ’04 Finals:
In all seriousness, Elden Campbell was a hell of a journeyman, who had extremely solid years with the Lakers and Hornets early in his career.
As Pistons’ fans, we were very fortunate that he spent most of his last two seasons in the league with the team, backing up Ben Wallace from 2003-’05. During that short stretch, he proved to be an invaluable backup defender.
In the ’04 NBA Finals, many attribute much of Detroit’s success to the defensive work of Elden Campbell. As Ben Wallace was undersized at Center compared to Shaquille O’Neal, Elden had to spend a lot of time on Shaq that series. Then, in the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals, Elden Campbell shut Shaq down once again, this time while he was on the Miami Heat.
From the USA Today:
"Campbell played only nine minutes in Game 4, but he was effective in forcing O’Neal away from the basket. O’Neal battled foul troubles and finished with a series-low 12 points. “I’m just using my fouls, because it’s no use taking them home with me,” Campbell said."
Mehmet Okur – A player who is more often recognized for his time spent with the Utah Jazz, the Pistons drafted “Memo” in the 2nd round of the 2001 NBA Draft to be their ‘stretch-five’ of the future.
Mehmet was a primary contributor for the team from 2002-’04, helping the Pistons to their championship victory in his second year.
One of the true, original three-point shooting big men in the league, Okur shot 35-percent on three-pointers in his time with the Pistons. Those numbers were enough to get him a six-year, $50-million offer sheet from Utah Jazz. While many fans were sad to see him leave, he was simply too big a luxury for Joe Dumars to keep on the roster.
Similarly to why the Pistons were forced to move on from Corliss Williamson, the team was faced with some key roster decisions, and Okur was one of the odd men out. Dumars had to consider the fact that his core players would be wanting new contracts soon, and so ultimately he made the choice to move on from luxury players coming off the bench.
Okur went on to become Complex’s 13th ranked worst NBA All-Star selection of all-time, so fans can be the judge of that particular roster decision. For more on the moves of Joe Dumars, check out this piece by Adrian Wojnarowski in 2008 that really delves into Dumars’ thought process surrounding the Allen Iverson trade: it’s a fun read, *sighs*.
Anyways, I will, and I hope other fans will as well, always remember him as an entertaining player, who played the game in a new and exciting way. I’ll end the “Memo” discussion with an awesome recording (historical document, if you prefer) of his 2004 Championship speech for some good nostalgia:
Antonio McDyess – McDyess was a former NBA All-Star who the Pistons took a flier on after the 2003-04 season. It was a risk, as he was still not far removed from a string of terrible knee injuries. However, he was a beast before the injuries and his signing was a risk Pistons’ fans are glad that the team took.
While he wasn’t the same player after the injuries that he was in the clips above, he did become a key contributor off a championship-contending Pistons’ bench for three seasons. During that span, he averaged a little over 8 points and 5 rebounds per game, and became a fan favorite for his hard work and consistency.
By the end of his tenure, he was actually starting at Center for Detroit. This was a result, of course, of some of the most painful front office decisions I have ever had to endure as a fan of Detroit sports. Yes I am referring to the Detroit Pistons’ decision to first underbid Ben Wallace by $11 million dollars. The second was signing a washed up Chris Webber, but I digress.
At the end of the day, McDyess was a legend of the game who Detroit fans were thrilled to have on the team. He is one of the first names that comes up in conversation regarding bench players on the Pistons, and for good reason. I know I am grateful to have seen such a great player, and I consider it an honor that I was able to watch the Olympic Gold Medalist in action.
Lindsey Hunter – One of the Pistons’ first round picks from the 1993 draft, Lindsey Hunter spent the majority of his career playing in The Palace. He played on the ‘Teal Era’ Pistons from 1993 to 2000, starting in the last four seasons of that stint.
While he was a fun player during his first seven years with the team, he is remembered most fondly for his contributions coming off the Pistons’ bench during two championship runs.
The Pistons re-acquired Lindsey Hunter in a trade with the Raptors for Michael Curry in 2003. Backing up Chauncey Billups, Hunter became one of the team’s many heroes of the 2004 Finals. Not only did he hit some clutch shots, but he managed to irritate Kobe Bryant:
The playoff heroics became something of a theme for old Lindsey Hunter and the Pistons from there on out. In game four of the 2005 NBA Finals agains the San Antonio Spurs, Lindsey Hunter gave Pistons’ fans this gift of a performance:
I know what you’re thinking: “You couldn’t possibly have another legendary Lindsey Hunter highlight video to show me.” Well, if that was your assumption, you were wrong: Dead Wrong. I present one more Lindsey Hunter performance to the Piston Powered audience.
People forget just how good Dwayne Wade was in 2006. I would say Lindsey’s defense in that video was about as good as you can find on D-Wade at that time.
In total, Lindsey Hunter spent 10 seasons with Detroit. In the beginning, he was a solid starting point who played well with Grant Hill (he caught the ball when Grant Hill passed it to him). At the end, he became a sharpshooting playoff legend. Not a bad career for a point guard out of Jackson State.
Jason Maxiell – Fresh off a loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, the Pistons’ selected Jason Maxiell with the 26th pick of the 2005 NBA Draft. Jason Maxiell was a bouncy, power forward out of the University of Cincinatti, actually ranking third all-time in blocked shots for the school.
While Jason Maxiell never really became a star in the league, he was a strong contributor off the Pistons’ bench over the next eight years. He did spend a few years in the starting lineup, but…
…I think most fans would prefer to think about Maxiell in terms of his role as an energetic and versatile reserve player. In those years, Maxiell provided a youthful punch off the bench while the Pistons were still competing for titles (see below).
However, once the Pistons started to decline as a team, Maxiell was thrust into a more featured role. He averaged 23.5 minutes per game in his final two years with the team; two years many Detroit basketball fans are still trying to forget. Maxiell was undersized for a starting power forward at the time, and he didn’t have much help around him. Nevertheless, us fans still remember and appreciate the time he gave us off the bench.
Will Bynum – The case could be made, fairly easily, that the Pistons were even worse from 2008-2014 than they were in the “Teal Era.” During this time, the Pistons only broke 30 wins three times (39, 32, and 30 – yikes). Besides being terrible through that entire stretch, the team had one other constant: Will Bynum came off the Pistons’ bench the entire time.
To me, this was simply a correlation, not a causation, because Will Bynum certainly gave Pistons’ fans some great games over his career. In fact, I would argue that Will Bynum was one of the few aspects of the team that gave me much joy at all during that stretch.
In 2012, Will Bynum unleashed 31 points (26 in the 4th/OT) on the Atlanta Hawks to secure a comeback-win for a very downtrodden Pistons team. This was one of my favorite games during this entire period of time, and it really demonstrates what made him exciting as a reserve.
The game inspired Bleacher Report to publish a piece about Will Bynum’s character. The article touches on the fact that Bynum never really got an opportunity to start for the Pistons. Whenever it looked like the starting lineup would have space for him, Rodney Stuckey, or Brandon Knight, or Brandon Jennings would end up in front of him. Nevertheless, Will Bynum was a true blue collar worker, never complained, and continuously earned the respect of fans.
The writer in that article asserts that Will Bynum represented everything right about sports. I would tend to agree.
Side note: If you were wondering what happened to Will Bynum, the man is still doing his thing in the D(G)-League!
Anthony Tolliver – Man, I am glad to have this guy back. Anthony Tolliver, or “Tolly,” as some will call him, found a place in my heart back in 2014. The Pistons acquired “Tolly” in a trade for Tony Mitchell. Most consider Tolliver a classic journeyman, having played for seven different teams throughout his career.
However, I would argue that he grew a fandom in Detroit that he doesn’t have with other fanbases. A career 36 percent three-point shooter, Tolliver found some of the most minutes of his career with the team in 2014-15. As a guy who could come in off the bench and knock down shots, rebound a little, and add some swagger to the club, he became an immediate fan favorite in Detroit.
Even before returning to the team in free agency this summer, he was already remembered as a crowd-pleaser at The Palace. It’s pretty silly to assume you know what what a professional athlete is thinking, but I do think Tolliver feels like this is the right place for him to be. He even referred to Detroit as his home, saying that he kept communication going with players during his “year-long vacation in California.”
I just linked the video twice above, but since I think it’s cool I’ll upload the whole clip, but this is Tolliver’s press conference re-introducing him to the Pistons. I think it’s pretty clear that he takes some personal ownership and pride in the team, and I’m thrilled to have that back:
I look forward to seeing him in action this fall at Little Caesar’s Arena. Who knows, maybe we’ll be able to add some more names to this list after this season.