5 Questions With Gerald Wallace

I talked to Portland forward Gerald Wallace prior to the Celtics-Trail Blazers game on Friday night at the Garden. Here is what the Alabama alum and former All-Star, who is averaging 13.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.9 assists had to say.

1. You have a long history of facing Paul Pierce, what is that match up like?

Wallace: It’s always intense. You know he is going to get the bulk of the offense. The offense is always going to move through him. You’re always on your toes, they’re going to call a lot of plays for him. The offense mainly goes through him. So you have to get up for it and be prepared for it.

2. As a versatile guy you’ll probably be matched up with Kevin Garnett as well. At this stage of his career are you surprised that he’s still playing at the level he is?

Wallace: No I’m not. I think that guys that are his type evolve with the time. And he has done a great job of evolving his game to where he’s able to knock down an 18 to 20 foot shot on the screen and roll. His defense is still there because he’s nearly 7 feet tall, so that’s always gonna be a presence and he keeps himself in great shape.

3. With the trade deadline next Thursday, does that change the atmosphere in the locker room at all?

Wallace: No what they got to do has nothing to do with us going out on the floor and playing, it’s got nothing to do with us. It doesn’t change anything, we still got to play. Our main thing is we got to get a win, we need to go out and win.

4. You guys are on your longest road trip of the year, this is night 2 of a 7 game trip, and you haven’t played well on the road [5-13] is there any particular reason you can pinpoint for that?

Wallace: I mean you can pinpoint any kind of reason you want. Our main thing is we have to improve and get better, and right now we haven’t did that so far this season. So we got to come out with something and figure something out.

5. You got a player option for next year, have you thought about that yet?

Wallace: No comment. No comment.

-Keefe