Let us look at the undrafted NBA Players who have made it to the Hall of Fame
Dedicated to Canadian-American physician and inventor of the sport James Naismith, who invented basketball, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Established in 1959, the Hall of Fame is known as basketball’s most complete library. Furthermore, it also promotes and preserves the history of basketball.
According to basketballreference.com, as of the Class of 2021, the Hall of Fame has formally inducted 432 basketball personalities.
Are there any undrafted NBA players who has made it to the Hall of Fame?
There is a rare chance of an undrafted basketball player being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. But exceptions do happen.
Ben Cameron Wallace, the defensive powerhouse of the Detroit Pistons’ 2004 NBA Championship team, has been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2021.
Wallace becomes the first undrafted NBA player in the modern era of basketball to ever achieve this feat. After being elected, his name will be enshrined at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, on September 11, 2021.
Undrafted out of Virginia Union, Wallace has spent 16 seasons in the NBA, playing for Washington Wizards, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, and Cleveland Cavaliers. He has played a staggering total of 1,088 career NBA games!
He was acquired by the Detroit Pistons from the Orlando Magic in the year 2000 and he went on to play nine seasons for the Pistons.
Ben Wallace career
With the Pistons, he collected the NBA Defensive Player of the Year title four times (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006) and was named an NBA All-Star four times (2003-06). Wallace was an All-NBA Second Team selection three times (2003, 2004, 2006), All-NBA Third Team selection twice (2002 and 2005), an NBA All-Defensive First Team selection five times (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006), and an All-Defensive Second Team selection once (2007).
During his first stint with the Detroit Pistons, that is from 2000 to 2006, the Pistons made the playoffs five times, winning Eastern Conference Championships in 2004 and 2005 and the NBA Championship in 2004.
Wallace is the Detroit Pistons’ all-time leader in regular-season and playoff blocks (1,486 and 215, respectively) and ranks first among Pistons’ all-time playoff leaders in rebounds (1,237).
He holds Pistons’ single-game records for blocks in a game (10 – twice), defensive rebounds in a quarter (10), and blocks in a quarter (6).
In 655 games with the Pistons, Wallace has averaged 6.6 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.3 blocks, 1.4 steals, and 1.5 assists in 32.6 minutes per game.
Hailing from White Hall, Alabama, Wallace recorded 10,482 rebounds during his career, becoming one of only 40 players, and the only undrafted player in NBA history to record 10,000 rebounds.
He is also one of only 11 players in NBA history to record 10,000 rebounds and 2,000 blocks and is the shortest player at 6’9” to record 2,000 career blocks.
Overall, in his career, Wallace averaged 5.7 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, 1.3 steals, and 1.3 assists in 29.5 minutes per game.
In 2012, Wallace retired from the NBA as a Detroit Pistons player and in his honor, the Detroit Pistons retired his jersey No. 3 in 2016.
Wallace is currently the President of basketball operations for the Grand Rapids Gold, an NBA G League team.
Ben Wallace quick facts
| Birth Place | White Hall, Alabama |
| College | Cuyahoga Community College (1992–1994) and Virginia Union University (1994–1996) |
| Age | 46 |
| Date of Birth | September 10, 1974 |
| Height (ft) | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Weight (kg) | 109 (240 lb) |
| Nationality | American |
| NBA Draft Year | 1996 |
| NBA Draft Pick | Undrafted |
| Playing Career | 1996-2012 |
| Position | Center |
| Teams | Washington Wizards, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers |
| Achievements | NBA champion (2004) 4× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006) 4× NBA All-Star (2003–2006) 3× All-NBA Second Team (2003, 2004, 2006) 2× All-NBA Third Team (2002, 2005) 5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2002–2006) NBA All-Defensive Second Team (2007) 2× NBA rebounding leader (2002, 2003) NBA blocks leader (2002) No. 3 retired by Detroit Pistons First-team Division II All-American – NABC (1996) |
| Number | 30, 4, 3, 6 |
Ben Wallace Stats
| Points | 6,254 (5.7 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 10,482 (9.6 rpg) |
| Blocks | 2,137 (2.0 bpg) |
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