National Basketball Association

Rasheed Wallace returns to Flint to assist with water crisis

Published Nov. 15, 2016 3:13 p.m. ET

Rob Perez

Rasheed Wallace spent five seasons playing for the Detroit Pistons and won an NBA Championship.

Rasheed Wallace eventually retired and joined the Detroit Pistons as an assistant coach.

Most importantly: Rasheed Wallace is always a family member of Detroit, both on the court and off.

While the city of Flint is approximately 70 miles away from the Detroit metropolis, it shares very similar political, economic and social struggles with its populous neighbor -- the most notorious of which: the lead-riddled water crisis that continues to plague the city.

This past weekend, ESPN's Rachel Nichols tagged along with Wallace while he and some of his friends visited ground zero of Michigan's environmental crisis and distributed truck loads of fresh water to desperate citizens:

This isn't just a ploy to get good press either, as Sheed has made multiple trips to assist the struggling citizens of Flint this year.

No matter what NBA team he played for -- Wallace has always been a fan favorite, and if we didn't already know why, we do now: he embraces the people the same way they embrace him, and backs up his words with action. A role model in more ways than one.