Although I've always loved Wallace's energy, I'm still surprised I'm saying this because I always thought of Gerald Wallace as an energy guy that plays hard-nosed defense and just intimidates other teams.

But I didn't understand how much of an impact he could have on a team until I realized his potential with the Nets as the #4 option. Not only is it perfect because he's simply a scrappy scorer, I didn't realize how prolific of a scrappy scorer he is. He gets points the "easy" way that most NBA players find so hard. Cutting, put backs, fastbreak steals, etc. He doesn't spot up for his points, which is perfect for a team filled with scorers who can create their own shots or shots for others.

Here's the epitome of the typical Gerald Wallace game:

Kings, Dec 2011
25 PTS / 8 RBS / 2 BLKS / 8-11 FGM (72%)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7DT_2VoFnc

Even when he has a REALLY big game, he does it quietly.

OKC, March 2011
40 PTS / 7 RBS / 1 BLK / 16-28 FGM (57%)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBhKee1Ge6k

Out of his 16 made field goals, only 6 were jumpshots.

LAL, January 2012 (New Years Day actually)
31 PTS / 7 RBS / 3 STL / 13-18 FGM (68%)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7QI_DfmeqI

Out of his 13 made field goals, only 2 were jumpshots.

That just shows off how he scores even when he scores big. Despite rarely taking jumpshots, Wallace has still averaged 15+ ppg or more in 8 of his last 9 years. The only season he didn’t do that was last year, though that’s because of his Portland numbers. He returned to 15.2 ppg after being traded to us last year.

As you would imagine from those highlights, he's insanely efficient... a career .473 shooter. In fact, in 4 of the 6 seasons that he “qualified” for ranking (making 300 field goals), he ranked in the top 5 of SFs in the NBA in FG%. In 2004-2005, he ranked #1.

Considering all of these things, Gerald Wallace will be the unsung hero that makes us a far more difficult team to beat than people expect. They'll expect the 19 ppg out of Deron, Joe, and Brook, but then when you sneak in another 15-16 from Gerald Wallace (which he's never needed to be a primary option in order to do, so he should still perform similarly), then teams and analysts will wonder how in the hell we seem to be so unbeatable against everyone except the Miami's and Oklahoma City's.