Bulls coach Scott Skiles got upset at Ben Wallace during Saturday night's win in the Garden because Wallace took the court wearing a headband. Skiles set a club policy that no player would wear headbands on the court but Wallace ignored it. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes that it's just one of many transgressions the big free agent signing has pulled thus far -
Sources said Wallace became upset early in training camp when Skiles enforced a team rule to tape ankles. Wallace never taped his ankles when he played for Detroit.
Wallace left practice to get his ankles taped and, unaccustomed to being constricted, had trouble running and sat out most of the practice, the sources said.
Less than a week later, Wallace hooked his MP3 player into a docking station to play music in the locker room before the first home exhibition game. Asked then if he now allowed pregame music inside the locker room, Skiles said he was unaware any was playing.
By the next home exhibition game, Wallace had headphones connected to his MP3 player. The headphones hung from a hook in his locker, with the volume turned up so loudly that music clearly emanated from them throughout the locker room.
Why Scott Skiles thinks these things matter I have no idea but I'm starting to think that we have found the cause of Larry Brown's bladder problems. Years following the Yankees have made me immune to issues like this - if the team thinks that having facial hair or headbands or music playing is a no-no, it's just that simple, you don't do it. That doesn't mean I think the headband hurts the team, because I don't. I like the headband, I think there's a place for it in today's NBA, but I'm not going to get benched over it.
I already thought that Wallace was a poor signing for a team that needed more offensive punch, the Bulls record reflects that, but if he's also going to cause problems in the locker room, well, you get what you overpay for.
(AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
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