Inductees

He grew up in Springfield, playing basketball in his family’s driveway, as well as over at the Boys & Girls Club of the Ozarks and with an AAU team full of future high school buddies.

Anthony Tolliver will never forget those days, not only for the good times but because his want-to to better himself – to never quit – ultimately carried him to the National Basketball Association as a 6-foot-8 forward.

“You have to have a different level of self-confidence to make it like I did,” Tolliver said of reaching the NBA. “I was released/cut eight or nine times before I made it. I kept my composure and belief in myself even when others doubted me.”

Tolliver certainly was among the best basketball players ever from the Show-Me State, and it’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted him with the Class of 2024.

A 2003 Kickapoo High School graduate, Tolliver helped lead the 2003 Chiefs to the Class 5 state championship, a 30-1 record and No. 12 national ranking in USA Today. He averaged 15.2 points and 6.5 rebounds that season, and was named All-State by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association and the state sportswriters and sportscasters’ group.

At Creighton University, he was a three-year starter in a career that covered 124 games. He scored 1,004 points and grabbed 603 rebounds. In his time, the Bluejays advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2005 and 2007 after winning the Missouri Valley Conference. The team also played in the 2004 and 2006 National Invitation Tournament. He was twice an All-Valley honoree.

Following graduation in 2007, he played in the National Basketball Association for 13 seasons, with 11 teams. He played his rookie year with the San Antonio Spurs and then went on to the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies and Philadelphia 76ers.

Overall, he played in more than 700 NBA games, scored more than 4,400 points and grabbed more than 2,400 rebounds. Four of his teams reached the NBA playoffs.

It’s quite the story of how he transformed himself into an NBA player. In the offseasons of his Creighton days, he trained as if he was a power forward, not his usual position as a center.

“About halfway through my college career, I knew I had a chance to play professionally, but I didn’t know I could play in the NBA until after college,” Tolliver said. “I participated in Portsmouth in Virginia, which got me an invite to the pre-draft camp. Once I performed there, I was confident I could compete at the highest level.”

Eventually, the Warriors called him up from the D-League, or Developmental League.

“They played me 30 minutes a game,” Tolliver said. “From then on, I thrived.”

The common denominator of success? The hard work he put into his craft.

In high school, despite being a center, he focused on becoming a great shooter. Additionally, he bought into the team concept and worked toward enhancing Kickapoo’s chances for his 2003 senior season.

“We had failed the previous year to make a real run at state, so our senior year we were extra motivated and locked in to get the job done,” Tolliver said. “We all had a common goal and worked daily towards it.”

In all, 23 NCAA Division I programs offered him a scholarship. Ultimately, with an idea of becoming a doctor, he chose Creighton because of its pre-med program.

There, Tolliver put the team first.

“I learned how to impact the game without touching the ball at Creighton – diving for loose balls, taking charges and playing team defense,” Tolliver said.

His shooting showed, especially during his junior year when Creighton rallied from a 22-3 deficit to beat rival Wichita State on a buzzer-beater – his only career buzzer-beater.

“It was an amazing accomplishment to make it to the NCAA Tournament,” Tolliver said. “Every year was measured on our ability to get to the Dance.”

Along the way, he learned from numerous mentors, and always had the support of family.

“It has been amazing to play basketball for a living for so long,” Tolliver said. “To fulfill my childhood dream of playing in the NBA was a dream come true.”

And now Tolliver is in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.

“It’s humbling to be included in such an amazing fraternity,” Tolliver said. “There are so many worthy candidates, and, for me to get chosen, is a blessing.”