Note: Updated for Ben Wallace’s 2021 Hall of Fame selection.
While the most glamorous part of playing basketball is scoring points, every championship team also needs players who can rebound, play defense, and do the dirty work necessary to win. In the history of the NBA, perhaps no players better epitomize the role of an offensively-challenged, yet ferocious rebounder and defender better than Dennis Rodman and Ben Wallace. Both were relatively undersized, yet more than made up for it with their hustle and determination, transforming from unheralded prospects to All-Star and Defensive Player of the Year anchors for championship teams – as two of the greatest rebounding and defense specialists ever, the natural question is:
Who was better – Dennis Rodman or Ben Wallace?
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