Spurs rookie will dedicate season to his deceased mom
Excerpt: Allen Vaughan, News-Leader
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Talking on the telephone to his mother last week, like he did at least once every day, Anthony Tolliver tried to explain the feeling.
The rookie for the San Antonio Spurs, didn't have his best NBA preseason game last Wednesday against the Washington Wizards -- nine points and five rebounds in 14 minutes -- but he said he felt at ease, like he belonged in the NBA.
His mother, Donna Lewis, assured him, like usual, gushing with pride and discussing details, since the game was televised nationally.
Tolliver said they came to a mutual agreement that her job as a mother was finished, that she'd prepared her baby for the world, with the NBA season just around the corner.
That was the last time Tolliver would speak to his mother.
Lewis, 56, died in her sleep last Thursday. Services are this Thursday at the Gillioz Theatre, starting with visitation at 5 p.m., followed by services at 6. The burial is 11 a.m. Friday at Rivermonte Cemetery.
"This is going to be the saddest time in my life, but ... it's almost a relief, because I know she is in a better place," Tolliver, 23, said Tuesday. "To me, this isn't the final straw. To me, it's almost comforting (because) she left us in such a great state."
The timing couldn't be more uneven for Tolliver. Amped for his NBA debut, which would have been today at home against the Phoenix Suns, Tolliver was told by the Spurs to take a leave of absence to be with his family. He also will miss Friday's game at Portland before returning to San Antonio to make his debut Tuesday at home against Dallas.
While Missouri State University fans will remember watching the 6-foot-9 former Kickapoo High School star torture the Bears with his back-to-the-basket offense and rugged rebounding and defense for the Creighton Bluejays, his NBA game is as much Blake Ahearn as it is Tim Duncan.
He has morphed into a power forward with range on a jump shot that extends to the 3-point line.
"I haven't worked on my post game since I left college," said Tolliver, who graduated from Creighton with a degree in finance. "Now, I'm a pick-and-pop guy.
"I've never been the most athletic big man ever, but I had to figure out a way to succeed in the NBA. Every player has one great skill. I knew I could be that with my mind."
While he's uncertain of his role with the Spurs, he's elated to have one, especially after last season's roller coaster.
Just four hours before last season's opening game, the Cleveland Cavaliers cut Tolliver. It forced him to peddle his wares with the NBA Developmental League's Iowa Energy and to later hook up with former Creighton teammate Nate Funk on a professional team in Germany.
That gave him time to work on that jump shot. It couldn't have paid off any better.
Word of his shooting and defensive prowess spread among NBA scouts, resulting in summer league invitations from the New Jersey Nets and San Antonio.
Tolliver played in three NBA summer leagues, including a run in Orlando with the Nets and games with the Spurs in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City.
After his first three games in Las Vegas -- and a 63 percent 3-point shooting clip -- the Spurs approached him about a partially guaranteed two-year contract.
He was sold.
"It's not a team you want to watch on TV, but you want to play for them," Tolliver joked.
He is grateful for the Spurs' handling of his family situation.
"I'd heard they're a classy organization and they are," he said.
Even though his contract is only partially guaranteed, he said he never felt like his job on the team -- whether as a practice player or a shooting big man -- was in jeopardy.
In six preseason games, including one start, he averaged 7.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 20.4 minutes per game, and shot 32.1 percent from the floor and 23.1 percent from 3-point range.
And without saying as much, the Spurs didn't renew the contract of legendary playoff star Robert Horry, instead choosing to bring Tolliver aboard.
"He'll always be 'Big Shot Bob,' " Tolliver said of Horry's reputation as a clutch shooter in the playoffs. "But as an everyday NBA player, I always thought I could do his job."
Now that he has the job he always wanted, Tolliver said he's going to miss his mother, whether it's her willingness to bend her ear or vice versa.
"We watched two games together," Creighton basketball coach Dana Altman said to the Omaha World-Herald. "She was so excited for Anthony. She had just retired, and she had planned to spend time following Anthony, whether he was in the NBA or playing overseas."
She won't get the chance to see him play an NBA game in person, but Tolliver said he knows her dream will live through him.
"(Playing in the NBA) was my dream, but the way she talked, you knew this was her dream, too," Tolliver said. "Not to be too cheesy, but I'm going to dedicate my career to her."
