Peyton Siva back home in Louisville
As Peyton Siva walked off the court after a four-hour workout on Tuesday afternoon, he offered an interesting look at where he has been and where he is going.
The guard was wearing a Detroit Pistons practice jersey, fresh off his rookie season in the NBA. And yet his training had brought him back here, to the University of Louisville's gym. This is college, the place where Siva crafted so many memories, but now it is also home.
It is where Siva and his wife Patience are living with their labradoodle as they wait for their first baby, a daughter they are expecting in September. It is where Siva has spent recent weeks going to schools and churches and anywhere he is asked, really, speaking to children and signing autographs and embracing a community that embraced him.
"I enjoy being back here," Siva said. "I enjoy the people. Everybody's nice. The people here really took me in when I came out here from Seattle, and it's been a great place for me, a great place to raise a family."
In the NBA, of course, home is often temporary. Siva realized that this season, as he bounced from the Pistons to the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Mad Ants and then back to the Pistons. He stayed in posh hotels and played against the New York Knicks, and he sat on six-hour bus rides and played against the Canton Charge.
"I learned so much this year," he said, "both about the NBA and just being a professional."
Siva's first wow-I've-made-it moment came in a preseason game against the Miami Heat. Yes, there was LeBron James, but something else resonated more strongly. Siva looked at the Heat's bench and saw veterans Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis.
When Siva attended elementary school in Seattle, Lewis and Allen were Sonics stars. And now here they were, icons from his childhood suddenly transformed into his peers.
In Detroit, veteran guard Chauncey Billups took Siva under his wing. He taught him the importance of keeping a routine and taking care of your body over the grind of an 82-game season.
"And whenever I did get a chance to play, whether it was 10 minutes, five minutes or one minute, we always broke down each clip and looked at what I could have done better in each situation," Siva said. "He really helped me out."
The day after Christmas, Siva was sent to Fort Wayne for the first of two stints in the NBA's Developmental League. Soon after, Patience Siva learned she was pregnant. The couple decided it would be best for Patience to move back to Louisville, where her family could offer more stability while Peyton's career was unfolding.
When Pistons guard Will Bynum was injured in late March, Siva finally got his chance. He played 13 minutes or more in each of the season's final eight games — prior to that he had reached that mark just once. He averaged 5.9 points and 2.8 assists per game during that final stretch.
"It helped with my confidence, just getting to really play instead of playing like 30 seconds or a minute," Siva said. "I think actually getting in the game and getting up and down the court against some of the best players in the world helped me feel like I belonged."
As a second-round pick, Siva's contract for next season is not guaranteed. So in July he will play for the Pistons' summer league team and see where that leads him. But first, he is working out and enjoying some quiet time here in Louisville.
He recently finished putting together a crib for his baby. Next month, Siva and former U of L guard Russ Smith will hold a youth basketball camp at Collegiate School. And Siva will surely continue to make appearances and shake hands and reminisce with the fans who clearly miss him.
"When they talk about the national championship, they say how exciting that year was for them, that they haven't been that excited for a long time," Siva said. "They were very happy for the championship to be back in Louisville."
And now, Peyton Siva is very happy to be back, too. He is happy to be home.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at (502) 582-4372 by email ahimmelsbach@courier-journal.com and on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach