Former Detroit Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace was never shy about speaking his mind during his time wearing the Pistons’ blue, red and white.
Of course, not much has changed these days. He’s still happy to let you know what he’s thinking, and he had quite the assessment regarding the championship team in 2004 that he was an integral part of compared to today’s NBA teams during an interview with Complex.
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Not only does Wallace think the 2004 Pistons would beat the best team’s in today’s NBA, but even took it a step farther.
“Oh, we would crush ‘em. We could crush it ‘cause we played defense,” Wallace said. “That’s what we hung our hat on night in and night out was defense. We not gon’ let no one come in and score 140 something points or let one individual player score 55 points. Nah, that’s not happening.
The Pistons were known for their tough brand of defense that led them to their first title since 1990. Series defeats of the Milwaukee Bucks, New Jersey Nets, and Indiana Pacers vaulted Detroit to the Finals, where they weren’t given much of a chance by pundits against the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers.
But in a stunning upset, Detroit dominated the Lakers in five games en route to glory.
Acquired at the trade deadline, Wallace quickly endeared himself to fans with his firebrand rhetoric and bombastic attitude on the court. His favorite catch phrase, “Ball don’t lie!” quickly became a household phrase.
Wallace says he still hears fans say that to him today.
“Oh yeah, I still get it,” Wallace said. “People walking down the street would just say “Ball don’t lie.”
“I kinda feel like Bobby McFerrin, the mastermind behind “Don’t worry, be happy.” I read in an interview somewhere that he hates that song because everybody always saying it to him. It can get a little irking sometimes if I’m in a basketball community, like going to a high school or college game. But yeah, out in public normally, nah it doesn’t.
He retired from the NBA in 2013 and later served as an assistant coach with the Pistons for the 2013-14 NBA season.
