preface
It is always more difficult to stand out in the talented NBA, some players can shine for a long time, and some players come to the league like a shooting star across the sky, and the light is enough to leave a unique mark. The protagonist of today's story almost broke his future, it was not enough to be selected once in the draft, and he was forced to change teams in the league, but he became the first All-Star in Bobcats history, suffered a broken rib, suffered a serious injury from lung damage but can play better in the following season, he is the representative of hard-line players, he is "Elvis" Gerard Wallace, and then walk into his story together.
High school basketball stars are in danger of choosing to bury their futures
Gerard Wallace, whose parents were separated at a young age, was brought up by his mother, and in a small town that could not be smaller, in his hometown of Fort Child, there were few cars on the road, children were playing on the road, and there were few flat roads in the whole city. Under his mother's patronage, Gerard Wallace grew up, sometimes helping out at his mother's grocery store, and spending more time in the basket in the backyard. Through basketball, Gerard Wallace's inner competitive fighting spirit was stimulated, but he chose a different path than ordinary children would choose, Gerard Wallace advocated muscle collision, liked to defend, and defeated the enemy in a tough way.
Gerard Wallace is growing taller and stronger, his dynamic talent is gradually revealed, Gerard Wallace played a dominant performance in his senior year, averaging 28.7 points, 13.8 rebounds and 3.2 steals per game enough for him to walk sideways in the league, describing Gerard Wallace's commitment on the court, running on the court with an attitude of escaping doom. Gerard Wallace was selected for the McDonald's All-American High School Star Game, and also won the Naismith Player of the Year award, what is the concept of this award, list a few names to know, Jason Kidd, Kobe have won this award. Gerard Wallace's draft has been bullish all the way, and since Garnett entered the draft in 1995, it has become increasingly popular to graduate from high school to participate in the NBA draft, riding this wind, Gerard Wallace has the opportunity to be selected with a very high pick, but he chose to go to college first.
As a result, in college, Gerard Wallace's shortcomings were magnified, he no longer can fully control the game like in high school, of course, physical fitness is still there, Gerard Wallace's block, dunk or Thunderball, but under the attention of more scouts, Gerard Wallace because of rough technique, uncoordinated shooting posture and other problems, the draft market is down, he has to adjust a lot of things, and then continue to play college basketball is too variable for the draft, the original choice is likely to bury his future, so, In 2001, Gerald Wallace ended his college basketball career and entered the NBA Draft, only to fall out of the lottery and to the end of the first round.
King abandons to "Elvis"
In the draft, Gerard Wallace was selected by the Kings with the 25th pick in the first round, when the Kings were sweeping the league with the Princeton system, the team's rotation was stable, leaving him little time to play the basket, admittedly Gerard Wallace was firm enough in his heart, and the fleeting opportunity was firmly grasped, although he had seemingly endless physical strength, the defensive end was fully committed, and he was revealing how strong his physical fitness was all the time, but he was emphasizing flexible scheduling, Playing under the Princeton system, which is fast and constantly passing the ball, is a bit difficult for Gerard Wallace, who has just entered the thick lines of the league. All factors superimposed, Gerard Wallace averaged less than 10 minutes per game with the Kings in the first three seasons, and the data is a measly 3.4 points, so I am afraid that I will lose my job.
The turning point came in 2004, when the league confirmed the expansion of the new team officially settled in Charlotte, becoming the 30th team in the NBA under the name of the Bobcats, according to the rules, they have to pick people from the player list of other teams, that is, the "expansion draft", of course, each team can have a protection list, these people can not move, and the King's list, there is no Gerard Wallace's name, by chance, the Bobcats took away this depressed young man, Sign a three-year contract extension with them.
In the new army Bobcats, Gerard Wallace is equivalent to a shallow bottom, eagle strikes the long sky, the initial formation of the Bobcats has no cooperation, the system to speak of, Gerard Wallace does not have to stick to the frame, so wanton swing, trance has the feeling of dominating the game in high school, the offensive end rushes to the penalty area, opens and closes or layups or smashes the ball into the basket, first throws himself into the air and then says, the defensive end does not hesitate to physically wrestle with the opponent, let who sees the brave Gerard Wallace may have to shake his head and sigh , "Today is another vicious battle".
In the Bobcats' second year, a number of statistics set career highs, shooting percentage, three-point shooting percentage, points, rebounds, steals, blocks per game, Gerard Wallace averaged 2.3 steals per game to get the steal king, he also added 2.1 steals to put his name next to Olajuwon, David Robinson, they are only three players in NBA history who can average at least 2 steals and 2 blocks per game at the same time. It's hard for anyone to think that the player who used to watch the water dispenser in the Kings has become another boss, the leader, Gerard Wallace, has become "Elvis".
After seven years of struggle, he was abandoned, and ended his career in "wandering"
In 2007, Gerard Wallace was chased by many teams including the Lone Ranger, Magic, Pistons, and Heat, but Gerard Wallace still chose to stay and accepted a long-term contract with an average salary of less than ten million dollars, in the 2006-07 season, most team bosses took more than this price, and some teams were second-in-command and third-in-command with annual salaries going above, such as the Timberwolves' Szherbiak, whose salary that season was $11.77 million.
Gerard Wallace continued to contribute to the team wholeheartedly, doing "desperate three langs", tearing his left shoulder, standing back on the court in about half a month, being elbowed into a concussion, doctors once worried that his intelligence may be damaged, and only half a month or so, Gerard Wallace came back, the worst in 2009, in a game between the Bobcats and the Lakers, Gerard Wallace burst into the box and prepared to pull out the buckle, but Bynum turned sideways to Gerard Wallace, An elbow directly fell to the vacating Gerard Wallace, his ribs were fractured, 40% of his lungs collapsed, and he could not withstand the pressure of flying and had to take a bus back to Charlotte. Less than a month later, Gerard Wallace stood back to his teammates and scored 25 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 1 block in the second game.
The following season, Gerard Wallace played the best season of his career. Averaging 19.4 points, 6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game, scoring assists are career highs, unlocking the first playoffs in team history with Bobcats, and being selected as an All-Star and entering the best defensive team, it can be said that through seven years of fighting, Gerard Wallace's tough team everyone has been affected, he gave Bobcats a unique mental outlook, but in 2011, Bobcats ruthlessly abandoned him in order to save money, and transferred to the Blazers for three little-known role players and two draft picks.
In the days that followed, Gerard Wallace went through trade after trade, eventually faded out of the league, and announced his retirement in 2017 to return to his hometown to enjoy a quiet life and spend time with his family. Compared to the league's superstars, Gerard Wallace may not be enough honors, but he has played a unique and exclusive "Elvis" career, 12 years have passed since his last time for the Bobcats, and even the Bobcats have changed their name to the Wasp, but when it comes to Bobcats, Gerard Wallace is always the first player name to pop out of his mouth.