Philadelphia is as well known mecca for basketball as any other city in the United States. The legends that the City of Brotherly love heralds reads like an NBA All-Star weekend program. It includes heroes of old such as Wilt Chamberlain, Paul Arizin, and Earl Monroe to stars of today in Kobe Bryant, and future in Tyreke Evans. The 1993 Philadelphia Simon Gratz team’s 31-0 record and Public League championship only begin to tell the story of one of the most controversial players in the history of the NBA. Rasheed Wallace had every tangible and intangible talent a successful basketball player could request, but an unbridled temper would ultimately form a big enough blockade to prevent him from becoming one of the NBA’s all time greats. His tailor made 6′11″ frame combined with a build to bang inside meshed perfectly with his beautiful shooting touch and off the charts basketball IQ. His adeptness for rebounding and knack for defensive rotations made him severely dangerous on both ends of the court. The mystery to Wallace’s lack of living expectations is simple to solve. Talent was never an issue, it was the inability to control his emotions. Wallace remains the only player to ever have been ejected from the McDonald’s All-American game.

The University of North Carolina is nationally considered one of the top programs in history. Hall of Fame coach Dean Smith recruited Wallace to Chapel Hill, North Carolina for his college years. Wallace would have his name mentioned alongside other great UNC recruits such as Phil Ford, James Worthy, Michael Jordan, and Antawn Jamison. Coach Smith was a crucial mentor to Wallace, assisting him in developing his body and game for the rigors of the NBA. During his time at North Carolina, Wallace had success in the national spotlight. Named an All-American by the AP his second year, Wallace ranks as the leading career field goal shooter in Atlantic Coast Conference history with a 0.635 percentage. Always retreating back to his demons, Wallace is also remembered for the fight with Andre Riddick in the 1995 NCAA Tournament Southeast Regional Final against Kentucky. Wallace led the Tar Heels to the NCAA Final Four in 1995. He left North Carolina after his sophomore season to enter the NBA draft.

Wallace was selected in the 1st round, the 4th pick overall by the Washington Bullets. As a rookie, Wallace played in 65 games, of which he started 51 for the injured Chris Webber (Does Washington now regret trading Wallace and Webber?). Wallace was selected to the rookie team for the All-Star Weekend. Later that year, he fractured his left thumb during a game against Orlando and could not return until the next season. After the season, Wallace was traded to Portland. Wallace ranked third in the league in field goal percentage with Portland. However, just as his season was slowly heading his way Wallace again broke his left thumb and was forced to miss the next month of the season, but he returned in time for a strong performance in the first round playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers, which the Blazers lost.

Next season, he signed a long-term contract to stay with the Portland Trail Blazers. He began extending himself into the community more than ever, most notably with his Rasheed Wallace Foundation, but his career suffered from numerous missteps on and off the court. In the NBA season, he set an NBA record with 38 technical fouls for the season, yet balanced that by being fifth in the league in field goal percentage. The following year, he would break his own record with 40 technicals and was Wallace was also suspended by the NBA for seven games for threatening then referee Tim Donaghy on an arena loading dock after a home game in 2003. That was the league’s longest suspension for an offense that was not related to violence or substance abuse.

Wallace was named an NBA All-Star in 2000 and 2001 and led the Trail Blazers to the Western Conference Finals in 1999 and 2000. The 2000 series against the Lakers was most noted for the underdog Blazers squandering a 15-point lead going into the fourth quarter of Game 7, a game in which Rasheed missed 3 of 4 free throws in the final minutes of a game that Portland would lose 89-84.
On February 9, 2004, Wallace was traded to the Atlanta Hawks. Wallace played only one game for the Hawks, scoring 20 points along with 6 rebounds, 5 blocks, 2 assists and a steal. Wallace was traded the next day in a three team deal where he would end up on the Detroit Pistons.

And along came Detroit.

The “NEED 4 SHEED” couldn’t have rang any louder than it did in Detroit. Rasheed was the perfect complement to the Pistons core of Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Tayshaun Prince, and Rip Hamilton. Wallace was the strong, stretch 4/5 Detroit needed to finally raise their game above the elite of the East. Wallace helped the Pistons win an unexpected NBA title, beating the heavily favored Lakers 4 games to 1. After the championship season, he paid for replica WWE World Heavyweight Championship belts to be made for each of his teammates and presented them as gifts when the 2004–05 regular season started. He had several memorable moments in the playoffs. After the second-round elimination of the Pacers, Wallace played his best series of the postseason in the Eastern Conference finals against the 1 seed Miami Heat. He shot 50% from the floor and averaged 14.5 points per game in the series’ seven games, and saved his best for last in a decisive Game 7. Against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, Wallace was criticized for leaving Robert Horry, arguably one of the greatest clutch shooters, open for the game-winning three-pointer in Game 5. Wallace’s stalwart defense and clutch shooting helped the Pistons to split the series 3–3, but in the final game, the Pistons lost 81–74.

After signing with Boston in the offseason, Sheed was all but prepared for retirement. Even though he dragged through an oft criticized regular season, Sheed was big in the playoffs. His trademark defense and veteran presence helped an aging Boston team to the NBA finals, where they would lose in 7 games to the LA Lakers. Sheed declared before the final game that it would be his last, and after chipping in an 11 point, 6 rebound performance, made his statement final.

Wallace should be in conversations of being one of the top 20 players in NBA history. He could have attended Hickory High. He would have been a perfect piece on the Wooden era UCLA teams. His name should mentioned amongst the NBA greats, alongside Russell and Cousy, Bird and Magic, and Jordan and Pippen for their love of the game and passion to win. Instead, it is history marred by temperament and turmoil. It’s tragic that such a talent will be primarily remembered for missed free throws and being absent on a defensive rotation. Perhaps the referees can rest a little easier this offseason, but for Rasheed, it is the finale of his tenure as the poster boy for “What might have been”.

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