PISTONS MOVE MITCHELL FOR TOLLIVER
The Detroit Pistons acquired forward-center Anthony Tolliver from the Phoenix Suns for forward-center Tony Mitchell.
What does it give the Phoenix Suns
This deal both saves the Suns money and upgrades their long-term post depth. Phoenix is doing a great job of stockpiling young, athletic talents and Mitchell fits that approach superbly. He's a high-flying big man with improving skills, and those factors make him a great fit for an up-tempo Phoenix club that needs more quality post player prospects. Mitchell might not quite be ready for prime time yet, but he has a lot of upside (and is a two-time D-League slam dunk champ).
What does it give the Detroit Pistons
In the wake of the recent waiving of star forward Josh Smith, it's clear team boss Stan Van Gundy is focused on overhauling his team's makeup. Journeyman Tolliver will help with that. While he's not a star, he's a hard-working veteran who does the little things and can provide quality minutes in the post. Down the road Van Gundy might regret dealing the gifted Mitchell, but this is a 'win-now' move.
Fantasy impact
Even if he sees regular minutes with the Pistons, Tolliver is a role player who's probably unlikely to produce significant fantasy-worthy stats. That said, he might eventually push Greg Monroe and Jonas Jerebko for minutes at power forward while probably mostly backing up Andre Drummond at center. This move probably hurts Joel Anthony's chances of getting more playing time. Meanwhile Mitchell has much more fantasy promise than Tolliver and gets a fresh start with the Suns, but it will probably take him awhile longer than Tolliver to make a splash stats-wise (so consider Mitchell more of a long-term keeper sleeper).
