Gerald Wallace of Brooklyn Nets, but not of Brooklyn

Gerald Wallace is not going to play the tough guy off the court. New York City scares him. Those are his words. He doesn't like big cities, this native of Childersberg, Alabama, population, 4,927, with a downtown dominated by, well, not much. Apparently, he'll never see those subway ads, either. He tells Stefan Bondy, "I have a driver. If I’m going to the city, that’s pretty much how I’m getting in." In fact, he admitted that Media Day was his first time in Brooklyn.

He still has a place in Childersberg and is selling his long time home 25 miles outside of Charlotte (where Dell Curry raised Stephen) for $1.6 million. Both have big properties. The Childersberg home has a two-and-a-half acre lake and a paddle boat, the Charlotte home 16 acres of land. None of that is to say Wallace is going to be intimidated about playing in New York. He's the intimidater, not the intimidatee. As Marshon Brooks says, "He’s got that intimidating-father look. When everybody’s playing, G. Wallace is always about his business."

• Gerald Wallace says he's 'afraid of New York City' - Stefan Bondy - New York Daily News
• Gerald Wallace doesn't like big cities (Video) - Robert Cassidy - New York Newsday