Rasheed to the Celtics . . . Brings back Memories

17 Jul 2009

1. Got thrown out of the McDonald’s All-American Game. 
2. Allegedly made prophecy after the Cameron game in 1994 to Meek that “As long as Me, Touche, and Jerry are here, we ain’t ever losing here.” 
3. In his first return to the Smith Center following his departure to the NBA (the Duke game), he hovered over the scorers’ table, yelling to Blue Devil and friend Stan Brunson, “Stanleeee, Stanleee.” 
4. Tried to psych up his teammates by yelling, “Let’s go out and play like we’re Chicago on NBA Jam.” 
5. Self explanatory. 
6. Reporter had to go to the student union arcade to try to find him to do an interview because that’s where he always was, playing NBA Jam or Mortal Kombat II. 
7. After he got schooled by Tim Duncan in the next-to-last home game of the ’95 season, he was despondent, and an athletic department official told him not to worry about it but to “just go out and kick Cherokee’s butt on Saturday” in the final home game vs. Duke. He replied, “Oh, I will. Believe me.” 
8. 10/11 FG, 25 points, 5 fouls in win at Duke, 2/2/95 
9. Caught an alley-oop dunk from behind the backboard at Dook his freshman year. 
10. Got his picture taken with Anthony Alfano. 
11. “Interviewed” Jerry with Rick Sullivan’s microphone at 1994 media day. 
12. When he was introduced at Dick Vitale-hosted midnight madness during his freshman year, he threw his head back, arched his back, and roared into the rafters. 
13. Overheard saying “I ain’t making no #$!*ing rap record” during his freshman year, shortly after the release of “Shaq Diesel.” 
14. 13/19 FG, 7/8 FT, 33 points, 6 Rebounds, 5 blocked shots, 4 fouls in win vs. Joe Smith and Maryland, semifinals, ACC tournament, 3/11/95. 
15. Fought with Andre Riddick in the 1995 NCAA Tournament Southeast Regional Final against Kentucky. “What an elbow, Jim!”-Bill Raftery. 
16. He flirted with a really pretty cheerleader throughout 1997 Virginia game at the Dean Dome as he sat next to Jerry. 
17. Half court alley-oop, 1995 ACC tournament semifinal vs. Maryland. 
18. Embraced Serge Zwikker after Serge scored 19 against Murray State in 1995 NCAA Tournament second round. 
19. Made pull up-3 pointer in losing effort at Maryland, 1995. 
20. 2-page, 4-color Nike ad that appeared in Sports Illustrated in 1995. 
21. Attempted to brawl with former teammate Chris Webber…in a pre-season game. 
22. 8/8 FG, 1/1 FT, 17 points, 16 rebounds vs. Marshall, 1/2/94. 
23. Pearce Landry has gone on the record saying that “Rasheed Wallace is my favorite North Carolina player ever.” 
24. He avoided interviews following games because he was in the training room calling his moms. 
25. Turnaround jump shot to ice 1997 game against L.A. to knock Shaq and the Lakers out of the 2 seed in the West for the playoffs. 
26. Under his personal directory in the 1994 Granville Towers phone book he wrote, “Peace to my peoples in Philly.” 
27. “Who is Bruce Martin? What number is he? He’s the dirty player, not me. He’s the ring-leader in my book.”– following a fight-marred victory vs. Clemson. 
28. Threw his shoes in celebration over the telephone wires outside the Dean E. Smith Center. 
29. 6/6 FG, 12 points, 13 rebounds in second collegiate game ever, vs. Cincinnati, 11/19/93 
30. Self explanatory. 
31. Wore a Carolina Basketball sweatshirt as he announced his intention to go pro after his sophomore season. 
32. In his first few weeks as a freshman at UNC, he walked up to a student in the Granville cafeteria and asking that student if he would please fill up his glass of Coke. It should be noted that Ra was within a few steps of the Coca-Cola machine when he asked the question. 
33. Ripped off a Wojo pass in the open court, dribbled the length of the court like a gazelle and dunked on said Wojo, while being permitted to yell and hang on the rim sans technical foul vs. Duke ’95. 
34. When asked about rating one of his fully extended rim shakers in one of his final games, he responded “Ask Ryan (Sullivan)…he’s the grader.” 
35. Used and abused top-pick in the NBA Joe Smith each and every time they played against one another in college, a trend that has continued in the professional ranks. 
36. Quoted from Cameron locker room as saying “There’s going to be a murder in Chapel Hill” following a question about upcoming State rematch in 1995. The ill-timed quote came in the aftermath of the Wendell Williamson shooting on Henderson Street. 
37. 10/13 FG, 22 points, 12 rebounds, 6 blocks, 4 fouls in win vs. the Answer and Georgetown, NCAA regional semifinals, 3/23/95. 
38. Allegedly told a professor several weeks following Arkansas Final Four loss that the reason he had not been attending class was that he was embarrassed to be seen on campus. 
39. As a freshman, made Jerry late for an interview in his Granville room because he wanted to go to KFC. 
40. Missed the flight to Maui in ’95 because he overslept, then missed the next flight too.
41. Turnaround jump shot to win 1996 NBA All-Rookie game. 
42. Self explanatory. 
43. Yelled “Pat ain’t nobody!” in the locker room as media-types huddled around Pat Sullivan following the aforementioned Clemson game in which Sullivan had returned after an extensive layoff due to injury. 
44. 12/14 FG, 27 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks in win vs. Georgia Tech, 2/12/95. 
45. In his first weekend in heaven at a notably sizable fraternal function, he was reportedly seen dancing in such a way as to allow his denim shorts to dip well below his knees, revealing his underpants, also dangling lower than is socially acceptable. 
46. Picture of him shirtless, tossing a bucket of water on some poor unsuspecting fool after an especially huge Simon Gratz victory. 
47. Got caught by CBS cameras dancing to whatever was playing on his walkman as he stood in the tunnel before the 1995 final 4. 
48. Didn’t list Mrs. Lee’s carrot cake as his favorite food. 
49. Refusal to shave head in unity with his teammates Jeff, Jerry, Donald, Clyde, and Ed during 1995 NCAA Tournament. 
50. Computerized simulation in 1995 DTH letter to the editor of Rasheed without hair. 
51. 21 points, 9 rebounds in win vs. Maryland, 1/7/95. 
52. Said that it was good to leave Philly for the tranquillity of Chapel Hill because, “I was constantly having to watch my back, hoping I wouldn’t get hit by a stray bullet or something.” Yet, “I’m a city boy at heart, so I do miss it sometimes. Especially my boys. They’re all at Villanova.” 
53. Had his face on the back of a t-shirt that simply says RA! 
54. Took the ball at midcourt and racing in for a dunk just before the halftime buzzer in 1995 NCAA Tourney vs. Iowa State … on a bad ankle. 
55. Got in a fight where he threw the ball off Luc Longley’s head as soon as he entered “the league.” 
56. Let his hair grow out very long toward the end of his playing days at Carolina. 
57. Said, “I don’t know of any law that says you can’t have fun on the court if you play for Carolina.” 
58. Wild celebration (jumping up and down, pointing and laughing) from the bench following Jerry’s “donkey kong” dunk at dook in 1994-95. Can only be seen through careful examination of the video tape. 
59. Admitted that weasely media-type John Feinstein was the reason he often forced himself to get up and actually go to class. 
60. His brave attempt to tie the Boston College game as the buzzer sounded with a 3-pointer from the corner. 
61. 2/23/94, Notre Dame, Ind., North Carolina 80, Notre Dame 71, received first technical foul as a Tar Heel. 
62. Boyhood bedroom was a basketball court, complete with foul lines drawn on the floor. 
63. Nasty tip-jam over Price, Meek and Parks, at Duke 1995. 
64. Manning the cash register, along with Jeff, for a time at Sutton’s. 
65. Former UNC assistant coach Dave Hanners has called Rasheed “the best practice player, along with George Lynch, to ever come to Carolina. He came ready to play and was always looking to get better.”
66. Always wore that black jacket he got from Magic Johnson’s roundball classic with a big Magic Johnson logo on the back…it is assumed he dominated that game from start to finish (also assuming he was not ejected from it). 
67. 7/11 FG, 5 rebounds, 3 fouls in first start ever vs. Duke, 3/5/95. 
68. Used to make a point of entering the Smith Center down by the memorabilia room in order to flirt with Smith Center receptionist Angela King. 
69. He had a solid 2.9 GPA at Carolina. 
70. The birthmark. 
71. In 1994 pre-tournament interview with Tom Suter drew the profound metaphor between team chemistry and jello…”See, we are like the dust…we just need to be mixed in right so we can gel.” 
72. Consistently eluded ESPN hottie Pam Oliver, despite the fact Pam and her crew were literally camped out in the Smith Center for an entire day and how flown from Connecticut to Chapel Hill just to talk to him.
73. Never chose a major. 
74. “Rasheed-me!” — Craig Kilborn 
75. Never had a car in college. 
76. “The Need For ‘Sheed.” — Rip City Magazine Feb. 1997 
77. His high school coach would only play him in the first half and he still averaged 19 ppg. 
78. “Same old refs, some things never change.” — upon his return to view ACC basketball in person, in support of Antawn Jamison against Duke in the Dome 
79. That alley oop on Shaq in 1997 NBA Playoffs. 
80. “HEY! YOU’RE HUBERT DAVIS! YOU’RE HUBERT DAVIS! EVERYBODY KNOWS YOU!” –Upon realizing that his seat at the 1996 Duke game in Chapel Hill was next to Mr. Davis’. 
81. Snatched the ball when the horn sounded at the end of the 1995 Southeast Regional victory over Kentucky and tossed it well beyond the rafters in Birmingham. 
82. Ran down the court rubbing Serge’s head after Serge miraculously dunked in a game. 
83. Vitale on Wallace: “Look out. He’s the elevator man…oh my!!!” 
84. Agonized over his hurt ankle in the 1995 ACC tournament final. 
85. Walked onto the Cameron floor in ’95 to the chant “Hooked on Phonics,” and upon seeing a confused Serge, he leaned over and explained what the Cameron Crazies meant. 
86. Banked in countless three-pointers in his first-ever midnight madness appearance. 
87. 9/9 FG, 1/1 FT, 19 points vs. Colorado State, 12/9/93. 
88. Listed Andre Agassi among the “athletes he most admires” in the 1994-95 UNC media guide. 
89. 14 points, 4 fouls in first game ever vs. Duke, 2/3/94. 
90. After the Larry Davis transfer announcement was made, the two were in the cafeteria talking about how much fun the Diet Pepsi rematch (that would never take place) was going to be…in a show of bravado Rasheed uttered “Larry best not bring that *!? inside.” 
91. His minor skirmish in 1997 NBA Playoffs with Jerome Kersey, after which there was so much love for Rasheed in the crowd that the fans began to cheer “Beat L.A.!” while Rasheed pumped his fist to urge them on. 
92. 3-25-95, Birmingham, Ala., North Carolina 74, Kentucky 61, received his last technical as a Tar Heel. 
93. Said on the very first and very last days of his sophomore season that he would be returning to Carolina for another year.
94. Not afraid of reacting to any call against him, no matter how solid. 
95. In college, if he would hack someone, he would keep his hand up in the air as if to say, “Look, my arms were straight up in the air,” but more often than not, his arms were indeed at an angle that indicated that he had in fact fouled whoever was shooting. 
96. He loves his mother. 
97. All-time leader in field goal percentage at Carolina. 
98. At Duke game in Chapel Hill during his first NBA season, as freshman Vince Carter, struggling to get playing time, was just trying to concentrate on the game as he walked to the scorer’s table, Rasheed yelled to him, “VINCE! VINCE! I know you hear me! You better look over here or I’m gonna slap you upside the head!” 
99. Stood with Jerry and Jeff sans costume in the center of Franklin Street during their first Halloween celebration and looked down on all his other “colleagues” as if they were morons. (A student proceeded to run up to him drunk saying, “Man you look like Rasheed Wallace…good costume.”) 
100. “We had some phantom technical fouls called when we had Rasheed. I know that. He’d just scream, he was so happy with a dunk and the next thing you know it’s a technical foul. If I ever dunked, I would have screamed. If I’d go up and sky and dunk one, I’d scream too.” –college basketball’s all-time winningest coach Dean E. Smith.