Fear the ’fro! Ben

**silver_corolla** · June 16th, 2005 11:22 AM

(MSN) Detroit center hits all new
energy level in Game 3 victory.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - This was not just Game 3 of the NBA Finals. It was a reunion — of the most popular basketball player in Detroit and his adoring fans, and of Ben Wallace and his talent.

A lot of people thought the Detroit Pistons were dead after two brutal knockouts in San Antonio. And a lot of people thought Wallace's subpar play was a big reason.

But very few of them would say it to Wallace's face. And now there is no need. Wallace put together a 15-point, 11-rebound, five-block, three-steal performance in Game 3. It was a classic Ben Wallace performance. It lifted the Pistons back into these NBA Finals, and it showed why they got here in the first place.

"We've said it all year that our best offense is a defense," Pistons point guard Chauncey Billups said. "Ben Wallace set the tone for us. He won the game. I mean, he really did."

Make that San Antonio Spurs 2, Detroit Ben Wallaces 1, with two games left in Wallace-land before the series returns to Texas (if it returns to Texas.)

"Ben was a man possessed going to the boards," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

Not bad for a guy who, until this game, seemed like a man regressed. Wallace had had five straight games with less than 10 rebounds — and 11 of 13 games with less than 10 rebounds. For a man who literally made a fortune by grabbing rebounds, this was a most unwelcome development.

Where had Wallace been? Well, for the Eastern Conference Finals, he was hidden by the massive presence of Shaquille O'Neal, who simply overpowered him with his size. (Dramatic pause here to contemplate a 6-foot-9, 240-pound man getting overpowered by another man's size. Conclusion: NBA players are large.)

And after that … well, maybe it was Shaq Hangover. The Pistons did not exactly have a fun itinerary. They flew home from Miami early Tuesday morning, then flew to San Antonio Tuesday evening. Then they played one of the finest teams in the NBA in one of the toughest arenas in the NBA, and they got crushed.

"Those first two games came too quick," Billups said. "I mean, you've got to understand, this guy has come off of playing seven games of battling Shaq. The flights that we made and such a quick turnaround to get to San Antonio, I think maybe it wore on him a little bit."

It certainly helped Wallace that his Spurs counterpart, Nazr Mohammed, picked up two fouls before Stevie Wonder finished the national anthem. In came … Rasho Nesterovic. If there is a cure for Shaq Hangover, its name is Rasho Nesterovic.

So out went Nesterovic … but the Spurs had to use a small lineup, and Wallace chews up small lineups. This is a guy who won the Defensive Player of the Year award by hounding guards as they brought the ball up court, then slipping into the paint and pounding against the likes of Tim Duncan.

Then Mohammed went back in, but by this point, Wallace was rolling. The crowd was rocking.

And the questions about the sudden decline of Ben Wallace — at age 30 — seemed silly.

"There was nothing wrong with me," Wallace said. "It was just a matter of me not being aggressive enough. I just wasn't as active as I should be."

In the first quarter, Wallace had five blocks. Five. Blocks.

There are NBA players who don't get five blocks in, say, March.

That is what Wallace can do for a team. He is, to say the least, a limited offensive player. But when he blocks shots and gets steals and grabs rebounds, he's worth more than a lot of 20-point scorers in this league.

"You know, I don't know if it was a home-cooked meal or sleeping in his own bed, but his energy level, it was like night and day," Billups said. "First play of the game, he gets a steal, three-point play, dunk it. Four or five blocks in that first quarter — six, seven rebounds. I mean, that's the Ben Wallace that we all know and love. There's nobody like him in this league. He's the best at what he does."

What he does is provide energy in such incredible doses, you wonder if it comes from some crazy source.

Like, um …

First two games: cornrows. Game 3: Afro. You do the math.

Credit goes to Chanda Wallace, Ben's wife.

"She said let your hair down and go out there and play some basketball," Ben said, "or else you can't eat."

Langya!! Ang laking halimaw nito este ang laking tao pala nito.... UNDER DE SAYA!! hehe.....