Since the Carmelo rumor’s legs didn’t strengthen we’ve got a new and more interesting deal, in my opinion, to mull over today. Check out the noise coming out of Bay Area this morning:

Joe Dumars, the Pistons’ president of basketball operations, gave notice after losing the Eastern Conference finals that no one on his veteran-laden team would be safe, and the source said Detroit is willing to divest itself of longtime stars Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups.

Wallace, like Davis an unrestricted free agent after ‘08-09, would give the Warriors their best true power forward since Chris Webber’s first stint in 1993-94 and has 3-point range that coach Don Nelson would love.

[…]

Since Wallace and Billups will combine to take home nearly $25 million in 2008-09, the Warriors would need to add more salary ballast to Davis in order to make the salary-cap numbers work.

One possibility in that role would be forward Al Harrington. A source close to the 10th-year forward said he is currently leaning toward requesting a trade from the Warriors this summer, although he will not make a final decision until after the draft.

I like this deal. If we have to part with guys this deal sounds fun. Baron is very similar to Chauncey in that he’s a big bodied dominant guard. I think Baron is a little better going to the rim than Billups. Chauncey may have the better long range stroke, but Davis is no slouch. Plus, this gives our PG of the future, Rodney Stuckey, one more prime time floor general to learn from.

I like Harrington’s game as well. Like Rasheed he can go inside and outside, although he didn’t get to show to much of his post game under Don Nelson.

Our engine is overdue for an oil change. This deal could help get some of that built up sludge out. I say DO IT JOE!

Lindsey (and apparently Rip Hamilton) are saying what many fans have been saying about all the “love” between Rasheed Wallace and Kevin Garnett during these Eastern Conference Finals. We love Sheed, but there’s a time and place for that stuff.

Elie Seckbach is at it again. This time he’s throwing Rasheed’s name into race for the White House. It plays to mixed results in the Pistons locker room including Lindsey Hunter’s standard “are you crazy” look he’s given Elie a time or two.

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I never pegged Sheed for a cyberspace type of cat but apparently he’s doing some blogging at YardBarker. Probably like Arenas’ blog Sheed isn’t at a keyboard banging these out, he’ll probably be telling someone what he wants said and they’ll do the heavy lifting. Here’s his first entry which is just a “Hi, my name is” type of post:

Wanna say what’s up to the Yardbarker nation, it’s ya boy Sheed Wallace talkin to ya. New to the “Yard” just want to let everyone know a little about me. I’m an avid football and boxing fan but pretty much watch all sports. Grew up in the city of brotherly love “Philly,” and love all pro teams there except for the Eagles (long story share another time). Went to North Carolina @ Chapel Hill and after 2 years decided to go to “The League.” Now I’m ballin with the Pistons and lovin it. We’re in the midst of snatchin another title. I’m live and in full effect and I will be talkin to you good people later.

So, you’re probably gonna wanna bookmark http://yardbarker.com/users/RasheedWallace

I made mention of this in the recap, Sheed clowning around with the Sixers huddle with the game on the line. I can’t say Sheed didn’t buy himself some slack with his performance (first half at least), but not this much. Could you imagine Bill Laimbeer doing this? No.

He could have at least have been trying to see what the Sixers plan to do to stop the ‘Stonz, but nah, this is funny because I’m not supposed to be here tee-hee.

Photos credits: Detroit News

I know it’s “all love” and there’s no real animosity towards the Sixers, but damn, this is the playoffs! Ok, Sheed loves Mo Cheeks and has mad respect for his home team’s grittiness, but c’mon. Isiah and Magic were tidy bowl during the season and at All-Star games but nearly came to blows in the Finals (that pretty much ended their cutesy friendship).

If Sheed and Co. really wants to do this thing right it’s HAS TO BE us vs. them from the first tip to hoisting of the O’Brien. Period.

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In the newest issue of SLAM magazine (#118 with D. Howard on the cover) Vincent Goodwill has written a very good article on the prodigious enigma that is our man in th middle (and beyond the arc) Rasheed Wallace. It seems like the masses are starting to get it, Rasheed Wallace is a revolutionary talent and a real cat. Sheed is where “what you see is what you get” and “more than meets the eye” intersect.

I’ll highlight some of the points from the article that had me bopping my head saying yeah, yeah. For the rest I’ll highly suggest you spend the 5 bucks like I did or just hit up the newsstand and read in the aisle. Special thanks to friend of the site Thomas for putting me up on this article. I’ll say a big GO SPURS GO for Thomas.

Ali, Malcolm, Wiley, Chappelle, Pryor…Rasheed Wallace? Ahead of their time, smart, possibly too conscious for their own good. Most times, true geniuses are considered quirky, crazy even. It isn’t until way down the line that their brilliance is discovered.

I believe that’s true about Rasheed. Although, the more pieces like this that come out and the more the talking heads change their views of Rasheed from malcontent to hoops savant the sooner Wallace’s b-ball brilliance will be universally accepted.

This will mark the third year in a row and fourth of his career in which Sheed had at least 100 blocks and 100 three-pointers. Big deal, you say at first? Well, Sheed is the only player in NBA history to have more than one such season.

That pretty much speaks for itself and reaffirms Charles Barkley’s statement that we’ve never seen a player like Rasheed in the NBA before.

Best players in the game? Those guys don’t average 13 and 7, like Sheed is this season. Well, who’s the best PF in the game? Tim Duncan, maybe? Sheed put 23 and 15 on him when the ‘05 Finals adversaries met in January, adding three steals and two blocks. Against last year’s MVP, Dirk Nowitzki? Twenty-one and 9, with four swats and three thefts in a February Motown matchup. Oh yeah, and he held Diggler to 3-18 in a 23 point drubbing.

That’s something we as Piston’s fans have come to realize. He plays well most nights, but the better the opponent, the bigger the Sheed. Chauncey said it earlier this year on Jim Rome’s ESPN show, Sheed gets bored against lesser talent. It wasn’t necessarily a knock on Rasheed, it’s just his adaptation to the conditions. He could be a 20 and 10 guy, but on the nights he doesn’t need to be he puts the team ahead of stats.

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If you head on over to ESPN’s NBA page you’ll see they’ve got a mini-tab devoted to our very own Rasheed Wallace.There’s a sweet 11 pic zoom gallery and one of the better articles about Rasheed you’ll read.

It’s been a growing sentiment this season that Rasheed Wallace would be a good candidate to join the coaching ranks. With more youth on the team than in recent memory you’re hearing more and more from the young guys how much Rasheed helps them in practice and during games by talking them. Even guys who aren’t Pistons, like Orlando’s Dwight Howard, seem to praise ‘Sheed for his on-court tutelage.

Seems Flip Saunders has even taken to calling ‘Sheed Coach Wallace:

“You know, Coach Wallace has done a pretty good job along those lines,” Saunders said. “Right now, he’s shooting the three so dang well yet he’s such a good post-up player it’s kind of a Catch-22. But I think what he’s done is he’s had a good year and he’s prepared himself to have a very solid and great playoff.

[…]

As for that “Coach Wallace” label? Well, there are a few who could see Wallace patrolling the sideline someday.

“We always talk about it,” Saunders said. “Before it’s all said and done I think he will. No one thought Larry Bird would get involved in anything and Larry got involved. It’s the ones sometimes who you least expect it, those are the ones who end up jumping into it full force.”

One thing is certain, if Rasheed were to bring half the passion to coaching as he does for playing he might make Bob Knight look pretty tame.

Anyone else catch Rasheed’s post game comments tonight? When asked by Fox Sport’s Trevor Thompson about the impending matchup with King James, Ben Wallace and the Cavs Rasheed replied, in classic Rasheed fashion:

“I don’t know if there’s a king, that’s something ya’ll labeled him”

Although Wallace isn’t going to concede LeBron as NBA royalty, he did say he’s one of the league’s “better players”.

David Stern gives Wallace a “take that” All-Star birth.

AUBURN HILLS — NBA commissioner David Stern has named Rasheed Wallace to the Eastern Conference All-Star team as a replacement for injured starter Kevin Garnett.

It is Wallace’s second All-Star selection as a Piston, and his fourth overall.

Wallace is averaging 12.9 points and 7.3 rebounds this season.

Garnett has been out with a strained abdomen.

The All-Star Game is next Sunday in New Orleans (via: Detroit News)