Rasheed Wallace reflects on owning arguably the NBA’s most unbreakable record

In a recent edition of the “Knuckleheads Podcast,” former Blazer great Rasheed Wallace took time to reflect on owning perhaps the most unbreakable record in NBA history.

The case for Rasheed Wallace making the Hall of Fame will always be a point of contention among basketball experts. But, he’ll forever own a spot in NBA lore because of the two records he believes will never be broken.

The 41 technical fouls he drew in a single season during the 2000-01 season with the Portland Trail Blazers, and his role in the arguably the most dominant stretch of team defense ever seen in the NBA, as a member of the Detroit Pistons.

On this morning’s edition of The Player’s Tribune’s Knuckleheads Podcast, the four-time All-Star and 2004 NBA champion joined hosts Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles, where they discussed everything from the first player to bust his arse at the NBA level, the legendary Duke-Kentucky rivalry, and why the Trail Blazers went through such a lengthy stretch without a postseason appearance after his departure, among much more.

It’s become chic to suggest that the NBA’s most unbreakable record belongs to say, Wilt Chamberlain and his 100-point game, or even his 55-rebound performance in 1960.

With consideration to the NBA’s rules, though, it’s much more likely for a player to heat up and threaten for 100 than it is for a player to accrue 41 whistles for technical fouls in a single season. Here’s what Wallace had to say about it:

"“I’m happy to say I’ve got two NBA records that will never be broken. One, is getting 40 something (41) technicals in one season. I doubt that’ll ever be broken. And then two, that defensive stint that we had when I was with the Pistons. And held high-scoring teams under 70 points. And the crazy thing about it, I swear to you guys. The last two games, we tried to do it. But the first five or six games we did it, we were just playing. “"

The math on a record to that degree makes it virtually impossible. ‘Sheed averaged a technical foul for every other game, garnering 41 whistles in 80 games played. And in today’s NBA, after the 16th technical foul, players would also have to deal with a suspension.

The deeper one dives into Wallace’s technical foul history, the more entertaining it gets. In Kerry Eggers’ Jail Blazers book, he makes note of how Rasheed Wallace somehow drew 22 technical fouls in 1996, and ranked sixth in the NBA.

That preseason, he mouthed his way into eight technicals in eight games. Per NBA Retweet, Wallace had a 35 percent chance of getting ejected every time he stepped onto the floor. These are my kind of analytics.

And after all of that, he miraculously doesn’t lead NBA history in technical fouls. That “honor” becomes to Utah Jazz great Karl Malone, who paces the Association with 332 technical fouls. Wallace ended with 317 at No. 3, and Charles Barkley had the No. 2 spot with 329.

Wallace’s incredible on-court theatrics provide us with an interesting way to view former NBA stars. Not every one of them will have story-after-story to tell of championship glory. And very few of them are as forthcoming about the not-so-pleasant records they owned after their careers are done. It’s rare that they can do both.

But such is the case in the saga of the enigmatic, always fun to watch Rasheed Wallace.