A while ago, Chris Vernon, a sharp, young, and pleasingly nutty sports radio host in Memphis told me that new GM Chris Wallace was THE BEST. The coolest guy in the world. He went on and on.

I made a mental note, and really did nothing with that information, other than to promise myself I'd invite Wallace on the Daily Dish next time I'm sitting in for Chad Ford.

But today I got an email that really kind of proves the notion that Chris Wallace is, well, a cool guy.

Zack emails:

I wanted to let you know about a pretty cool meeting some Memphis Griz fans had with new GM Chris Wallace. I, along with two other guys, have started up a Memphis Grizzlies blog. And Chris Wallace agreed to an invitation to meet at a local Buffalo Wild Wings to have a Friday afternoon drink with my two co-bloggers (and a few other grizzlies.com messageboard veterans).

A recap of the encounter is posted here.

I had to miss it because I teach a class on Friday afternoons, but I was told it was a great time and Chris Wallace was friendly and candid with everyone.

I don't think it is common (is it?) for a NBA GM to meet with fanatics that run a smalltime blog and post regularly on the team messageboard.

No, Zack. It's not normal at all. I can assure you of that. From that recap, by "ChipC3," at their new blog 3 Shades of Blue, here's what it was like when Chris Wallace arrived:

So there I was with (real names withheld to protect identities) Memphis Slim, Spartacus, Grizzman, Stubbylegs, MoneyShot and Mr. Toad when in walked Chris Wallace talking on his cell phone. Now I don't know what he was saying on the phone (I imagined he was telling Phoenix why Shawn Marion wasn't a good fit on the Grizzlies but I have a vivid imagination) but he hung up the phone and walked up to our table and introduced himself. No shyness. No pretense. No air of superiority. Chris Wallace is definitely not Jerry West.

For the next 2 hours Chris Wallace educated us on his vision of the world of basketball. He answered all of our questions. No holds barred education from someone who really knows what he is talking about. To say it was enlightening would be an understatement. It was like that favorite teacher in college who kept you enthralled during the entire class. I only wish I had thought to bring paper to take notes.

The rest of the post is very interesting -- as Chip relays some of the things he learned from Chris Wallace.

This is a great story about blogging, too. Thanks to blog software, regular people are meeting with power brokers, putting their questions to them, and disseminating the resulting knowledge essentially without limit around the globe. That's pretty cool. And a high-five to Chris Wallace for being a cool dude.