Report: Ben Wallace joining Pistons as basketball operations and team engagement advisor
"Big Ben" is officially back in Detroit.
Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Ben Wallace is joining the Detroit Pistons as a basketball operations and team engagement advisor. Wallace was among 16 inductees last month, including fellow NBA players Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce and Chris Webber among others.
The former fiery personality went undrafted in 1996, before signing with the then-Washington Bullets. Wallace was traded by the Washington Wizards to the Orlando Magic in 1999 and then moved from the Magic to the Pistons during the 2000 offseason.
Wallace would spend the next six seasons in Detroit, earning a trip to the All-Star game four straight years and leading the league in blocks once and rebounds twice. Wallace also won four Defensive Player of the Year awards during his first tenure in the Motor City and was a member of the 2004 championship team.
Wallace spent parts of the 2006-2007 through 2008-2009 campaigns split between the Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers, but returned to the Pistons ahead of the 2009-2010 season to close out his career for three final years.
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