With Sheed, you took the good with the bad. Or the bad with the good. His superior play and unquestionable swagger helped the Pistons win a championship in 2004 and come oh so close to a second in 2005. But his infamous Game 6 meltdowns in the conference finals in 2007 and 2008 helped ensure that we wouldn't add another championship (or as Sheed would call it, "'ship") to the trophy case.
We rode him as far as we could take him, and while we appreciated what he had done for us, it was time to move on. That seemed to be the general consensus. But now that he's gone, I feel empty. It probably was time for him to take his act down the road, but he'll be missed. You'll miss his talent. You'll miss his style. And you'll miss his mouth.
His mouth may have gotten himself into a lot of trouble over the years with countless fines and technical fouls, but it also provided us with some memorable quotes. Sheed was always good for a great byte, no matter what the situation. So while I will miss his presence on the court, I'll miss the wisdom he imparted most of all.
And so, in honor of his final days in Auburn Hills, here are 10 of Sheed's best lines (in no particular order):
"Ball don't lie."
Possibly Rasheed's most popular and well-known byte, mostly because he said it so often. It's not original, as it's been used on playgrounds for decades, but Sheed made it a name brand, taunting opposing players at the free throw line whether he was standing in the lane or even sitting on the bench. His reasoning? If you didn't make the free throw, you weren't really fouled, and the ball -- in all its goodness -- would make things right with the world. Of course, that would also mean that the referee screwed up, but I'm sure Rasheed would never disrespect the men in black and white on purpose.
"Both teams played hard."
In his days with the Portland Trailblazers, Sheed made plenty of headlines for the right reasons, leading the Blazers to back-to-back conference finals and being named to two All-Star teams. He made headlines for the wrong reasons too. He threatened a referee outside the arena on a loading dock (Tim Donaghy, go figure) and set an NBA record for technical fouls. And while this quote may fall into the latter category, it can't help but make you laugh. It's classic Sheed. After a frustrating game, Sheed sat down at the press table to answer questions, like he is required to do by the league. But no one said how he had to answer them, did they? His answer to every question, no matter the question? "Both teams played hard." Leave it to Sheed to take a cliché and make it a memorable quote.
"I'm guaranteeing Game 2. That's the bottom line and that's all I'm saying. They will not win Game 2 and you heard that from me. Put it front page, back page, middle of the page. They will not win Game 2."
The Pistons didn't play well in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Indiana Pacers in 2004. Rasheed didn't either, scoring just four points on 1-for-7 shooting, including an airball from the corner that could have tied the game with ten seconds left. But that performance didn't affect his confidence, apparently. With a crowd of reporters around his locker after the game, Sheed gave them all the sound byte they were looking for. Channeling his inner Joe Namath, he guaranteed a Piston victory in Game 2. It took one of the most famous blocks in basketball history by Tayshaun Prince to seal the deal, but the Pistons helped Wallace come through on his promise and tied the series at one game apiece. And the "Guaran-Sheed" was born.
"All those (expletive) calls they had out there with Mike and Kenny, y'all seen that (expletive). Lot of them phantom calls, cats flopping and falling all over the floor and they're calling that (expletive). Y'all, (expletive), that ain't basketball out there. It's all (expletive) entertainment. Y'all (expletive) should know that (expletive). All (expletive) entertainment."
Sheed was fined $25,000 by the league for this little ditty. I'm assuming $12,500 for the profanity and $12,500 for criticizing the officials. Referees Mike Callahan and Kenny Mauer were the objects of his wrath following a 106-102 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals in 2008. It may be all (expletive) entertainment out there, but Sheed, you are all the (expletive) entertainment I need in my life.
"They're going to boo me; I love it. I wish little Napoleon didn't make that rule because I'd be carrying that belt back in there."
"Little Napoleon" would be commissioner David Stern. "That belt" would be the replica WWE championship belt he designed and purchased for all his Piston teammates following their championship run in 2004. The Pistons were presented with their belts (much cooler than rings if you ask me) before the 2005 season opener against the Houston Rockets. Sheed used his belt to inspire his team's title defense throughout the season, but commissioner Stern requested that Wallace and the Pistons not bring their belts into road arenas. In this particular instance, Sheed is speaking of a return to Portland.
"Granted, they're a good team, but we ain't scared of nobody. I don't know why all you cats think we're scared of the Lakers, or that the Lakers are this dominant force. We ain't scared of those cats, man."
Nor should they have been. Not many media pundits gave the Pistons a chance to beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals, and after Kobe Bryant's three-pointer broke Detroit's back in Game 2, some incorrectly reasoned that the Lakers' mystique would prevail once again. But Sheed let loose on one local reporter (ahem, Greg Molzon) when he had the gall to ask if the Pistons could hang with L.A.'s Hall of Fame cast. You know the rest. Invincible they were not, and the Pistons won the 'ship in five games.
"I'm telling you, Darko is a Serbian gangster. Darko's got some bodies back there. He can go psycho on guys."
Perhaps this quote makes you laugh, but Sheed wasn't kidding. The infamous draft bust spent years learning from the likes of Rasheed, Ben Wallace and Antonio McDyess. Pistons players always stuck up for him, saying how much skill and promise he showed, but Sheed let us all know that he wasn't as soft as we perceived him. Perhaps taking a cue from Sheed himself, Darko unleashed a YouTube-worthy tirade aimed at the referees following a Serbian loss in Eurobasket 2007. Since I don't speak Serbian, I'll have to rely on FanHouse for the translation, but the Serbian Gangster talks of murdering the refs and doing unsavory things to their mothers and daughters. Yikes! You were supposed to teach him post moves and defense Sheed!
"Some people say that without Larry we won't get back, but he wasn't the one out there playing. It's cool, though. We know we're going to be there. I don't want none of them cats coming back talking about 'those red-hot Pistons,' and all of that. We'll see those bandwagon (expletive)-cats come May and June, that's when they'll predict the Pistons will win it."
Sheed may have chastised basketball bookworms for always neglecting to include the Pistons in their preseason picks, but I have a feeling he preferred things that way. He thrived on the disrespect. The whole team did, really. He always talked about the bandwagon cats and being on the "back burner" where the food "tastes better." He swore they wouldn't lose their swagger, saying, "It's going to be us and somebody. That's all I know for sure." We loved the confidence. Fans ate it up. So when Larry Brown didn't return for the 2006 season after back-to-back trips to the finals, the Pistons sprinted out of the gate, winning 24 of their first 27 games on their way to a franchise-best 64 wins. But with those statistics, came respect. And those "red-hot Pistons" cooled off in the playoffs.
"It doesn't matter to me what ya'll write about me or what ya'll say about me. As long as the people inside that locker room, this organization, and my household know what type of person I am, I don't care what ya'll write or say about me. It won't affect the type of person I am, the type of father that I am, the type of husband that I am."
Rasheed Wallace had a reputation. People questioned his heart, his maturity, his desire. Announcers called him a "walking technical foul." Analysts said he could have been one of the best players in the league if he applied himself -- or cared. But Sheed cared about the important things. Teammates and ex-teammates rave about what a great person he is and how he brings camaraderie to the locker room. He always puts his family first, preferring to take vacations with them than to be named to All-Star teams. He's involved with numerous community activities and charitable organizations. And even though reaction was mixed when it was announced that he would be signing with the Boston Celtics, the people that mattered to him knew what kind of person he was. I doubt he read a single word that was printed in this town about him this week. He doesn't care. But he had his priorities right where they should be.
"That's the end, man."
It's not his best quote, but it's certainly the most appropriate now that he's gone. We'll miss you, Sheed. Watch out for those bandwagon cats, and don't let Napoleon keep you down.
Find out what everyone else is viewing on abc12.com
| More Mid-Michigan and Flint news
|
ABC12 News at a glance |
|
abc12togo.com wireless |
Get us on your iPhone |
| ABC12 Desktop Alert Tool |
abc12.com newsletters |
|
Visit us on Facebook | Report a typo
|
