By all accounts, Ben Wallace should have never been in the NBA, let alone become a star.
Wallace had everything going against him — his size (closer to 6-7 than 6-9), his school (Division II Virginia Union), his skill set (he couldn't shoot) — when he turned pro in the summer of 1996. Despite those obstacles, he turned into a self-made NBA superstar in the 2000s.
The man who was overlooked by every NBA team in the much-ballyhooed 1996 NBA Draft will have his No. 3 jersey retired by the Pistons on Saturday.
Wallace started his NBA career in Washington and Orlando, but it was Detroit where he found a home. He was the heart and soul of the mid-2000s Pistons teams that personified toughness to a generation of young basketball fans. One of those young fans was a kid from Saginaw, Mich., named Draymond Green.
As a youngster, Green was so enamored with the Pistons center that he wore the same trademark afro that Wallace popularized to a generation that couldn’t remember Julius Erving’s perfectly round blowout. Wallace's hair not only made him look taller, it made him look more intimidating. It was a part of his aura.
But it was never about style with Wallace. Like those gritty Pistons teams, Wallace was all about substance.
“Ben had an incredible work ethic,” Green remembered in a letter he penned to his childhood hero. “Not only did he work out extremely hard every day, but more importantly, he had the heart of a lion. It was amazing because he didn't say much, but everyone knew that he meant business.”
That business-like attitude and work ethic helped Wallace lead the NBA in rebounding twice, make four All-Star teams, win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year four times and help the Pistons win the 2004 NBA championship.
Those traits have helped inspire Green, the latest undersized, jack-of-all-trades player to help his team win an NBA championship.
“Thank you, Mr. Wallace, for showing me that it is possible to make it to the NBA and wreak havoc while being undersized,” Green wrote in concluding his letter. “Hopefully, there is a kid watching me and wondering the same things I did about you, realizing that man does not have the ability to judge what's in another man's heart!”
And on Saturday, those traits will lift his name to the rafters alongside Isiah Thomas, Dave Bing, Bob Lanier and other Pistons legends. Not bad for an undersized guy nobody wanted.