JULY 16TH: The Pistons have made the Billups signing official, issuing a press release and (re-)introducing the veteran guard to Detroit media today.
JULY 11TH: The Pistons have reached a contract agreement with former NBA Finals MVP Chauncey Billups, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. According to Wojnarowski, the ex-Piston will return to Detroit on a two-year deal worth $5MM+. The second year will be a team option, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News.
Billups, 36, indicated last week that he hoped to play at least two more years in the NBA, so seeing him secure a multiyear deal, even if the second year isn't fully guaranteed, isn't a shock. In addition to the Pistons, the Cavaliers, Spurs, Mavericks, Knicks, Kings, Nets and Wolves all expressed some level of interest in the veteran guard.
The two years Billups spent with the Clippers only resulted in 44 total games, due mostly to a torn Achilles tendon suffered in February 2012. In the contests he did play with the club, he averaged 11.5 PPG and 3.1 APG in 24.4 minutes per game, while shooting 37.7% on three-pointers.
For the Pistons, the hope is that Billups will be solid as a backcourt rotation piece and will help mentor Brandon Knight. The team appears to be using either cap space or its $2.65MM room exception to fit Billups onto the roster.