I meant to get this up earlier today, but the d*** computer at school didn't let me. Anyway, I came across this clipping in the Detroit Free Press Sunday. It was an except from the Chicago Sun-Times, where Jay Mariotti (who also does ESPN's Around the Horn) discussed the Bulls trading Ben Wallace, among others. To make a long story short, Mariotti throws Wallace under the bus and praises the Bulls for dealing him. That I can understand. What he says to defend it, however, must be questioned.

In his column, Mariotti states that "Dollar for dollar, inch for inch, Ben Wallace leaves as the biggest and most uninspiring bust in the long, gnarly history of Chicago sports". He also brings up that he fought management over his headband, "brought down (the) master plan", basically got Scott Skiles fired, didn't play the defense he did in Detroit, and "was exposed as a vastly overpriced roleplayer without the comfort zone of his talented Detroit teammates". Let's review Mariotti's claims:

Brought down the master plan: Well, he may not have won you a title, but you won your first playoff series since Jordan retired. That's better than nothing.

The headband: Who cares? Seriously, Skiles should have lightened up sooner. Speaking of which...

Getting Skiles fired: The entire Bulls team was on the verge of mutiny. Joakim Noah yelled at an assistent coach right before the ax was used, and Skiles is the kind of coach who wears out his welcome after so much time. His firing was inevitable, so I can't blame Wallace.

Didn't play like a four time DPOY: Maybe, but his style of play was predicated on hustle and determination; both are in short supply. Maybe John Paxson should have noticed that when he signed Wallace before last season (we'll get to Pax in a moment).

Exposed as a vastly overpriced roleplayer outside Detroit: See above.

All these things could have been prevented if Paxson had noticed what Joe Dumars did and not signed Wallace to that megadeal. Team GMs are payed to know when a player may break down, and Pax simply didn't do his homework. But the one thing that Mariotti said that really made me laugh was calling Wallace "the biggest... bust in the long, gnarly history of Chicago sports". Really?

Let me get this straight; in a city where the Cubs, despite some good players, haven't won a title in 100 years; where the White Sox traded Sammy Sosa for George Bell; where the Blackhawks stink; and where the Bears have drafted Cade McNown, Curtis Enis and Rashaan Salaam; Wallace is the city's biggest sports bust? Give me a break!

Mariotti doesn't even mention his favorite QB, Rex Grossman, as a bust, and Grossman did nothing but make mistakes. Heck, Mariotti screamed in horror on ATH when Grossman reupped! What about McNown, taken so high, and falling so fast. What about Enis entering and exiting quickly? Or Salaam being the lastest Heisman bust? Wallace wasn't as bad as those guys were (and are). So Mariotti just blowing smoke here.

In summation, Ben Wallace's signing was a mistake because the team around him (i.e. lots of perimeter O, no post-up O) wasn't built for him. That's the fault of his GM, not of Wallace himself. That's makes him a financial mistake, but not the biggest bust in Chicago history. Maybe next time Mariotti does a column, he should check his facts a little more carefully, because if he doesn't, he could be the next Cade McNown!