Former UNC basketball great Rasheed Wallace will be received a big honor later this summer in a place that means a great deal to him.
On June 24, the intersection of 18th street and Hunting Park Ave in Philadelphia will be renamed ‘Rasheed Wallace Road’. Wallace great up in Philadelphia and attended Simon Gratz High School where he was named a two-time All-American, McDonalds All-American and USA Today High School Player of the Year as a senior in 1993.
Despite playing just 19 minutes per game his senior season, Wallace averaged 16 points, 15 rebounds and seven blocks per game.
Here is a look at the announcement.
Wallace played two seasons at North Carolina (1993-95) where he helped lead the Tar Heels to the 1993 Final Four. As a freshman, Wallace averaged 9.5 points per game and 6.6 rebounds per game. During his sophomore year, he was named an All-American and First Team All-ACC player while averaging 16.6 points on 65.4 percent shooting and grabbing 8.2 rebounds per game. At the time, his shooting percentage was the second-highest mark in UNC basketball history.
Wallace was then selected No. 4 in the 1995 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets. After one season in Washington he was traded to the Portland Trailblazers where he made his big splash to get his NBA career started.
In eight season with the Trailblazers, Wallace was a two-time All-Star while averaging 16.8 points and 7.0 rebonds per game.
He then was traded to the Detroit Pistons where he won an NBA Championship in 2004 while playing for fellow Tar Heel Larry Brown. The Pistons would also make it back to the NBA Finals in 2005 before falling in seven games to the San Antonio Spurs. He was a two-time All-Star with the Pistons as well.
After six seasons in Detroit, Wallace then played one season in 2009-10 for the Boston Celtics before retiring for two seasons. He then came back and played one final season in 2012-13 for the New York Knicks.
In 1109 career NBA games, Wallace averaged 14.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.
