Rasheed Wallace never lacked conviction.
That conviction came alive again when the former All-Star power forward opened up about his career compared to Kevin Garnett — his longtime peer and on-court rival.
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Wallace, who entered the NBA in 1995 as the fourth overall pick, spent 16 seasons in the league, winning a championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004. Garnett, drafted straight out of high school in the same year, went on to have an iconic career that included an MVP award, a Defensive Player of the Year honor, and a ring of his own with the Boston Celtics in 2008.
Similar with Garnett
Wallace made it clear that there wasn’t much daylight between him and Garnett when it came to raw talent.
“I say that the only difference between K.G. and I,” Wallace said. “There’s a lot of similarities. The only difference I would say, he’s a better rebounder than I am, but I would have to say I’m a better shooter than he is. If you take that away, everything else is same.”
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Wallace’s mid-range jumper was surgical. A 6-foot-11 forward with a high-arcing fadeaway and a soft touch, he stretched the floor long before stretch-fours became fashionable.
In the 2000-2001 season, he averaged 19.2 points per game on 50.1 percent shooting. He also shot at a reliable over 30 percent from beyond the arc during several peak years — a rarity for big men at the time.
On the other hand, Garnett was a rebounding savant. During the 2003–04 season, when he won the NBA Most Valuable Player award, he led the league with 13.9 rebounds per game and added 24.2 points, five assists, and 2.2 blocks per game. It was a domination that stretched both ends of the floor. His motor, intensity, and versatility on defense became his signature, while Wallace carried a quieter skill set — less demonstrative but undeniably impactful.
The two battled often, most memorably during playoff encounters between Garnett’s Minnesota Timberwolves and Wallace’s Portland Trail Blazers and later during the latter’s stint with the Pistons against Garnett’s Celtics.
Two sides of a coin
While Garnett’s accolades stacked high, Wallace’s contributions were often more nuanced. Less spotlight, more glue. He was the rare player who could score 20 points without breaking the flow of the game. His basketball IQ was legendary in locker rooms, his footwork elite, and his understanding of team defensive schemes, which was among the best of his era.
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The difference in legacy has often been defined by perception and narrative. With his fiery intensity, camera-visible snarls, and MVP-level consistency, Garnett was easy to brand as a generational great. Wallace, however, took a different route, one defined by technical fouls, clashes with referees, and a stoic kind of leadership. But aside from that, they had pretty much the same build.
“We going to get you up, talked, forget everybody else, we focused on this team, do this right now, it’s all the same,” Wallace said.
It was the kind of ethos that ran through Detroit’s championship locker room in 2004. That Pistons squad, built around defense, unselfishness, and toughness, toppled a Los Angeles Lakers team stacked with Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone, and Gary Payton. Wallace acquired mid-season, gave them a cerebral edge, and a vocal presence on the floor.
He wasn’t a traditional stat-stuffer, but his presence was irreplaceable. Opposing coaches planned for him. He made NBA All-Star teams (four in total), played in 177 playoff games, and helped anchor a team-first identity that forced the NBA to reckon with balance over stardom.
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When Wallace talks about being just as talented as Garnett, it’s not about who had more trophies or who made more All-NBA teams. It’s about impact. It’s about what was felt inside the game — not necessarily what was always seen outside of it.