“We thought we were all super, super stars,” Hamilton said. While the argument rages that there were no stars on that team, Hamilton said they were all stars who sacrificed for the good of each other. If you look over the history of the NBA over the last 35 years, that team to me is the most unique championship team of any NBA team.” It was about winning and playing tough and competitive. When I talk to other players, everyone has such great respect for him, because it wasn’t about stats. “Ben embodied that spirit of sacrifice and doing whatever it took to win. They just competed so hard and played so well as a team. There was really no top-five franchise player on that team. They went to six consecutive Eastern Conference finals. They talk about the Bad Boys, but I think that team with Ben and Chauncey were the heart and soul. “Ben had a profound effect on this organization,” Tellem said. He’s now vice chairman of Palace Sports & Entertainment, the Pistons’ parent company.įor him the timing is perfect: One of his favorite all-time clients is being honored while he’s part of the organization. He did it the best in the league.”Īrn Tellem was Wallace’s agent at the time. A lot of guys get caught up in the scoring, but Ben knew what he did great. He was a guy that did all the hard, gritty - defend, block shots, rebound. “Ben brought a dimension to the game that a lot of guys don’t want to do.
He embodied Detroit, and the fans loved him. “We are all happy for him, and he deserves this. “We’ll all be there - Rasheed (Wallace), Chauncey, myself,” Hamilton said. 3 is rising to the rafters Saturday at the Palace. That warrior mentality and fierce competitiveness made Wallace one of the NBA’s most unique players at the time. Wallace had been named defensive player of the year twice in his career (and would be named twice more), and O’Neal wanted Wallace one-on-one. Chauncey Billups was named MVP, but it was Wallace’s dirty work in the post that paved the way to the championship. I’ll take him head-up.’ You don’t hear that from anybody.”Īfter the teams split the first two games of the series, the Pistons won the next three.
“Most guys would say, ‘Hey, give me some help down here so I won’t get in foul trouble,’ ” Hamilton said. wanted to double team Shaq, and Ben said, ‘No, I’ll guard him head-up.” “Other than the Afro, the thing I remember most about Ben was when we played in the Finals,” said Richard Hamilton, the tireless shooting guard on that team. View Gallery: Fear the 'Fro: Ben Wallace through the yearsīefore the 2004 NBA Finals, coach Larry Brown told the Detroit Pistons he wanted to double team the Los Angeles Lakers’ Shaquille O’Neal, the biggest inside force in basketball at the time.
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