Rasheed Wallace has been to the All Star game at least 4 times by my count. He's been to the conference finals 8 times and the NBA Finals three times, winning once. When Billups, Ben Wallace, and Chauncey Billups were each asked what was the key to winning the championship in 2004, they immediately said the acquisition of Rasheed Wallace. He was a complete game changer for them and was the series leader in blocked shots for the that 2004 NBA Finals, helping the Pistons beat Kobe/Payton/Malone/Shaq in 5 games. Aldridge has a long way to go before we can say he is better than Sheed.
Who won the title in 2003? Sheed is a excellent second fiddle, but what LA has done, carry the team on his back, Sheed wouldn't do.
How can we compare the two before Aldridge racks up at least half a technical foul per game for a season? Go Blazers
I am again not buying it. Kobe has rather small hands and he still seems to do very well in the post and out of it. His handle is not suspect and his ability to attack with the ball from the dribble does not seem to be bad at all. Sheed had a different set of attributes from Duncan - he was much faster for example - and as mentioned, the small hands benefited his shooting. FWIW - KG does not have the huge hands that Duncan has as well - he is pretty comprable, hand size wise, to 'Sheed. At the end of the day - I still think that 'Sheed had all-world talent and attributes. It was his not-elite work ethic and his inability to control his emotions and push himself that never allowed him to maximize the production from that talent.
Does athleticism come under "talent?" If so, Sheed had more talent. But Aldridge works so much harder, much more often. Considering defense, I'd call it a wash, with a slight edge to Sheed because of the winning.
There, fixed it for you. You're welcome. I'm a big Sheed fan. Did he take full advantage of his talent? I doubt it. Still, he was a great player IMO, so smart about the game, just a bit of a nut case. I doubt Aldridge ever matches Sheed's defense, but with his amazing offensive arsenal, his temperament, his willingness to be coached and to improve his game, I think Aldridge will surpass Sheed by next season. Now all LaMarcus needs is a supporting cast to help him get deep into the playoffs.
when they did their respective predrafts, Wallace came in over an inch shorter and 20 pounds lighter then Tim who clearly has a wider/bigger frame. TD absolutely can palm the ball like a grapefruit. All those attributes help a post player. As a big Wake fan, I watched Timmy getting the best of Sheed when they matched up as ACC freshman and every single year since despite being almost 2 full years younger. It just seems silly to say that the main difference between the measurably less physically gifted player who was always looking up on the court to the younger player, was desire. Garnett also measured over an inch taller then Wallace at his predraft (barefoot KG & TD came in 6'11 vs RW 6'9.75). I sure don't think the two were comparable athletically as KG was absolutely a freak able to play a good portion of his career at SF. Like Sheed, KG was a situational low post player because he didn't have the bulk/size to bang against the biggest in the league. Sheed is a little wider and played there a little more, but he didn't have Kevin's quickness. I've never noticed or heard of KG having small hands and apparently neither has the internets, as the first two pages of google hits on Kevin Garnett small hands brought zero references to him having small hands... this query did bring up a few mentions of the small hands of Wallace, Kwame Brown & Garnett's big mouth though. my point has never been that Wallace maximized his ability as I wouldn't claim that of just about any player. If he'd had the perfect mental makeup of competitive tenacity, ice water running through his veins, and innate defensive & passing instincts, he certainly would have been a better player then he was. Without question Sheed's combustibility hurt his results especially in Portland where he couldn't buy a call. Certainly Garnett's demeanor was also less then perfect as he has often become too hyped limiting his go-to ability in pressure situations. I just think it's clearly wrong to say that Wallace had the same sort of physical advantages that these two all time greats enjoyed. We'll have to agree to disagree STOMP
