"It was all-out defense" - Rasheed Wallace on why Indiana Pacers were Detroit's toughest playoff matchup
Sheed picked the Pacers over the Shaq-Kobe Lakers who the Pistons faced in the '04 Finals.
APR 5, 2024 8:22 PM EDT
Rasheed Wallace wasn't necessarily the greatest player on the floor on a nightly basis during his time in the NBA. However, the UNC product still won a lot, with the highlight being his 2004 NBA Finals victory with the Detroit Pistons.
The Pistons teams Rasheed played on during the 2000s were always going on deep playoff runs. They were also involved in some heated rivalries during that time. According to Wallace, though, playing against the Indiana Pacers in the playoffs was always their toughest task.
Playoff battles vs. Pacers
Sheed was traded to the Pistons midway through the 2003-04 season and soon found himself in the middle of a heated rivalry. The "Malice at the Palace" hadn't happened yet, but it would eventually set the stage for a heated series between the two teams in the 2005 NBA Playoffs.
Of course, Detroit also had to get past the Pacers during their Finals run in 2004, which was a battle in its own right. They eventually eliminated them in six games before beating the Shaq-Kobe Los Angeles Lakers in five games to clinch a championship.
But looking back at all of his playoff series, Wallace believes that the Pacers were always Detroit's toughest opponent because of how good both teams were on defense.
"Our toughest series, to me, was Indiana," Wallace said on "That's What Sheed Said." "It was always a battle with them dudes, it was a great game. Jermaine (O'Neal), Stephen Jackson, Ron Artest, they had a formidable squad, and I loved going against them because it was all-out defense. I don't nobody ever cracked 100."
Tough wins against Indiana
The 2000s Pistons and Pacers were constructed similarly. They didn't necessarily have the biggest stars on their roster but rather a group of gritty two-way players who were not afraid to mix it up with whoever they found themselves playing against.
Unsurprisingly, that led to fireworks every time the two squads faced off against each other. When you add the stakes that come with the postseason, these two teams were prepared to go to war. Wallace loved these sorts of battles, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise that he feels this way.
Making things even better from Sheed's perspective is that the Pistons won both of their playoff duels against the Pacers during this time. His feelings on these series may have been different had they lost, but thankfully, that's not something he has to worry about.
While they may not have been as aethestically pleasing given the low-scoring nature of these games, Wallace loved battling against the Pacers in the postseason. And maybe now that his stance is known, fans will go back and look at these series with more appreciation.
While he considers himself a bit of a Swiss Army knife that can write about any topic in a pinch, Owen really enjoys focusing on the latest news of the NBA and the current season of play. His journalism career started when he created his own sports website, before he transitioned in covering the NBA, while also working for some Boston-based publishers.
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