When the Pistons acquired Rasheed Wallace in February
2004, he was viewed as the guy who could put them over
the top. Four months later, the Pistons were
celebrating their third NBA championship.
Here we are four years later and Wallace remains the
Pistons' X factor. When he's at his best, the Pistons
have no peer in the league.
Wallace was surprisingly focused during the first two
months and the Pistons rolled through a tough,
road-heavy schedule to gain a commanding lead in the
Central Division.
Wallace's intensity has been spotty this month and the
Pistons have been a .500 team. But when he's on, like
he was Tuesday in Indianapolis, the Pistons
immediately look fearsome again.
After slumbering through the first quarter, he planted
himself down on the low block and destroyed the
Pacers' depleted frontcourt. In an eyeblink, he had
five inside baskets while screaming "And one!" and
talking trash to his overmatched defenders. Wallace
kept it going in the second half and the Pistons had
their third straight win.
You want to know if the Pistons will break their
two-year drought and get back to the Finals? Tell me
how often Rasheed feels like posting up this spring
and I'll give you the answer.
By the way, the Pistons had to fly into Detroit Metro
and take a bus to Waterford (where Roundball Two
normally flies in and out of) because of weather
conditions early Wednesday, so they cancelled
practice. They'll prepare for Kobe and the Lakers
Thursday with just a shootaround.