We've now reached the first of two unacceptably lopsided match-ups, Reggie vs. Rasheed. Again, these guys probably won't spend too much time guarding each other, but going position-by-position they belong together for our purposes. Click here to catch up with the PG and Center battles.

After the jump we'll take a look at these two, fair warning, it's not a pretty picture.
The Stats




Season Stats: Evans was a bench player playing starters minutes for most of the year. His rebound and steal numbers were impressive, everything else was not. Rasheed coasted through much of the season, apparently, only exerting himself from time to time. His low field goal percentage was exacerbated by his love for the three pointer and a system that either doesn't call for him to operate in the low post (where he's extremely effective), or just doesn't ask it of him unless it's absolutely needed. Wallace is an excellent shot blocker as well (1.7 per game).

Head-To-Head: Head-to-head, the numbers actually put Evans on top, but the first game is an excellent example of how Wallace can influence a game in all areas (6 assists, 3 blocks, 6 boards).

The Advantage

Let's just get this out of the way right now, Wallace completely outclasses Reggie. In fact, he may be the most talented player on the Pistons' roster, and that's saying quite a bit.

When Philadelphia Has The Ball

I believe Rasheed will be covering Dalembert, which is neither here nor there. Sammy is going to get his points on easy opportunities and maybe a couple of 12-15 foot jumpers. The key is going to be how available Wallace is to help out. If he leaks off Sammy to block shots, the Sixers drivers will find Sammy for easy opportunities, whether he catches and converts off those passes is another thing. The best we can hope for from Evans on the offensive side of the ball is a tough battle on the offensive glass, maybe a couple of point-blank layups and he also may be able to get the Piston bigs into foul trouble. When Evans has an easy dunk fouling him is a no-brainer since he's such a horrible shot from the line.

When Detroit Has The Ball

Reggie's defense isn't crucial against the starting lineup. He'll probably be on McDyess, so he needs to keep track of him on the pick and roll and he needs to keep him off the offensive glass. I'm more confident that he'll be able to accomplish the latter. Rasheed, on the offensive side, is the key. He's such a versatile weapon, but he can be dealt with. If Detroit decides they want to ride Wallace in the post, he's going to cause problems for the Sixers. His turnaround jumper is almost impossible to defend, and he has moves going to the hoop as well. If Flip Saunders decides he's going to use Rasheed down there early we could be looking at early foul trouble for Dalembert. If Sammy needs a double to contain him, the outside shooters will come into play. Luckily, the Pistons don't do too much of this (they hardly went to Wallace in the post at all in the three games Wallace played against them this season).

Wallace's range, which easily extends out to three, can be a blessing or a curse for the Sixers. Honestly, I'd prefer that he stay out on the perimeter and launch threes. It's not that he's bad from deep, 36% is very good especially for a PF, it's just that having him on the perimeter means he isn't going to kill the Sixers down low. Long shots also mean long rebounds which translate into running opportunities. The flip side of Rasheed living on the perimeter is deadly, though. If Sammy gets drawn away from the hoop to guard him there's no one left to protect the basket. Evans cannot do it, he may draw a charge here and there, but he never blocks shots. One possibility would be to switch Sammy and Evans if Sheed starts knocking down jumpers. Reggie isn't particularly well-suited for the job, but neither is Sam. This way Dalembert can still help out on the drivers. Another concern is the defensive rotations getting to Wallace. Sam and Reggie are both notoriously slow when they close out on shooters. If Wallace is hot, he's going to get wide-open looks.

Up next: Andre Iguodala vs. Tayshaun Prince