John Wall shot 28% outside of 3-feet this year

[ManualRam]

Between him and Tyreke Evans, what on earth is Calipari teaching his guards? He recruits uber-talented guys and lets them run loose on the NCAA, but doesn't show them how to play basketball and it hurts them in the long run.

players dont really learn under coach cal. he hides weaknesses, tries to make the pieces work for one yr, then rolls over the lineup.
he's the ultimate AAU coach.

[rockymac52]

Also, I think people's short-term expectations of John Wall are too high. If you compare his sophomore season to the sophomore seasons of Rose, Westbrook, Rondo, Paul, and Parker, Wall's doing just as well as them for the most part (better than some, worse than some).

Russell Westbrook shot 22.1% from 3 as a sophomore, and 41.8% from the field (worse than Wall).

The one thing that stands out compared to those 5 guys is Wall's turnovers, which are still a little too high. But that should get better with time as well.

Here's the PERs of those 6 players in their sophomore seasons:

Chris Paul: 22
Derrick Rose: 18.6
Russell Westbrook: 17.8
John Wall: 17.7
Tony Parker: 16.5
Rajon Rondo: 15.6



Wall's right on pace for where he needs to be at the moment. It would have been nice if he could already shoot the ball well, but it's a problem that a lot of young PGs have in the NBA, and many of them figure it out eventually.

[rockymac52]

look at it two ways though. the fact that he finished with a decent overall FG percentage shows how good he is at getting to the rim and finishing....

look at it the second way...the bad way. Defenders can sag off him up to 20 feet when hes on the perimiter.

And they do just that! And Wall is so good at getting to the hoop that he still manages to score relatively frequently. I'm telling you, just wait, if this kid ever gets an adequate jumper, he's going to go off.

[magicman1978]

Wow. That could be the absolute worst in the league - regardless of position.

Nah, Tyreke is worse.

According to Hoop Data - Tyreke is 120/454 (26.4%) compared to 141/511 (27.6%) for Wall. I'm speechless.

Rondo is 100/307 (32.6%)

[BBgun]

look at it two ways though. the fact that he finished with a decent overall FG percentage shows how good he is at getting to the rim and finishing....

look at it the second way...the bad way. Defenders can sag off him up to 20 feet when hes on the perimiter.

And they do just that! And Wall is so good at getting to the hoop that he still manages to score relatively frequently. I'm telling you, just wait, if this kid ever gets an adequate jumper, he's going to go off.

I'm with you man, I've been saying for a while that while he's more raw than a lot of young star PG's his ceiling is best PG in the league. Hes gonna need some serious work to get there but with his natural ability the sky is the limit. His speed an athleticism are otherworldy.

[Duffman100]

How old is he? Can he develop?

People get so obsessed with player delivering right away. Sometime it takes a player a little longer...he's only had 2 years in the league, he's averaging 8.5 assists and almost 5 rebounds and you're calling him a bust?

I'd gladly take him on my team...without hesitation.

[GhostsOfGil]

Not a big deal IMO.

He is a pure point guard and one of the best in today's game at finding his teammates. He is good enough to score in double figures with ease because of his athleticism, he's a slasher and an open floor nightmare. Wall having a piss poor jump shot (which he can work on) is not a big deal. Just get him shooters and he'll find them.

Don't ever put "Wall" and "pure point guard" in the same sentence

Over reaction.

Is he a pure pg in the mold of Nash or Rondo? No, however he definitely is a pass first guard that has shown serious Jason Kidd like moments. Also keep in mind, the Wizards had very few offensive options so Wall had to force A LOT of his offense. If you actually watch Wall, you'll see there are times when he flat out carves up defenses with his passing.

[Joseph17]

He needs to change his form. His mechanics aren't that bad, but he releases it on the way down which is a recipe for failure. It kind of reminds me of the way Juwan Howard used to shoot.

[Chosen01]

Rose and Westbrook had similar weaknesses, and both have improved steadily through off season hard work. They both got a decent mid range game first to loosen things up and have both started to hit the 3 at a decent clip. The best example perhaps though is Tony Parker, who still doesn't have much of a 3, BUT he's deadly mid range and also just understands the game so much better, uses his speed and athleticism better and makes great decisions with the ball. He should take notes watching Parker and develop his jumper slowly and steadily.

Part of it is that its easier to work on what you are good at than what you are bad at.

Russell and Rose put it in the hard work, and now Wall is maybe realizing he has to. Though he also has longer to go. Rose actually had a decent mid-range coming in, quite in contrast to some of the thoughts about him.

If anything it has regressed as he's tried to incorporate the three and he needs to get back to it.

I don't think Westbrook is that great a shooter still, but he gets such good elevation on his pull up J, that it is very hard to contest.

It does seem like trying to develop a 3 point shot is a mistake for some players *cough*Wade*cough*.

Except it doesn't matter nearly as much with Wade because he isn't terrible from 4ft-23 feet in fact quite the opposite.

If John Wall could at least get a RESPECTABLE jumper he could be top 5 PG easily but that's a pretty big IF.

[Rebuilding Year]

The jumper will come for Wall.

He is absolutely Rose with a pass first mentality though.

He's right on pace for where he should be.

[Doctor MJ]

Not a big deal IMO.

He is a pure point guard and one of the best in today's game at finding his teammates. He is good enough to score in double figures with ease because of his athleticism, he's a slasher and an open floor nightmare. Wall having a piss poor jump shot (which he can work on) is not a big deal. Just get him shooters and he'll find them.

Don't ever put "Wall" and "pure point guard" in the same sentence

Over reaction.

Is he a pure pg in the mold of Nash or Rondo? No, however he definitely is a pass first guard that has shown serious Jason Kidd like moments. Also keep in mind, the Wizards had very few offensive options so Wall had to force A LOT of his offense. If you actually watch Wall, you'll see there are times when he flat out carves up defenses with his passing.

Did you just respond by essentially saying "I'm not saying he's the passer in the game, but he's Jason Kidd level"? That's pretty crazy man.

Is there anyone who doubts that Ricky Rubio is already a better passer than Wall?

Now consider: Rubio is known for his dreadful shooting but according to hoopdata always scores more outside of 3 feet, and does so with a better shooting percentage.

[noobcake]

Irving > Wall

Thank you. I laugh at all the noobs saying Wall > Irving earlier in the season. For some people, a broken shot will always be broken.

Rose, Wall and Westbrick all have broken jumpers. Kyrie is alreay a top 5 shooting PG his rookie year.

Irving will be the best PG in the league within 2 years now that Rose's career is on the downstride.

[TheKingOfVa360]

Irving > Wall

Thank you. I laugh at all the noobs saying Wall > Irving earlier in the season. For some people, a broken shot will always be broken.

Rose, Wall and Westbrick all have broken jumpers. Kyrie is alreay a top 5 shooting PG his rookie year.

Irving will be the best PG in the league within 2 years now that Rose's career is on the downstride.

Irving has like one game with double digit assist. Wall is a way better passer, rebounder, and defender.

[7-Day Dray]

LOL @ the people saying he isn't a pure PG. Dude averaged 8 assists with a piss-poor supporting cast for most of the year.

[noobcake]

Irving > Wall

Thank you. I laugh at all the noobs saying Wall > Irving earlier in the season. For some people, a broken shot will always be broken.

Rose, Wall and Westbrick all have broken jumpers. Kyrie is alreay a top 5 shooting PG his rookie year.

Irving will be the best PG in the league within 2 years now that Rose's career is on the downstride.

Irving has like one game with double digit assist. Wall is a way better passer, rebounder, and defender.

Irving is an amazing passer. His assists are so deflated. He has better vision than Wall.

Ofc wall is a better rebounder being a bigger guard. Better defense than a rookie? I'm so surprised.

[Optms]

Irving is a score first point guard. He's great at it, but doesn't look to set up teammates the way Wall does.

If there is one thing Wall has on Irving, its his ability to get his teammates involved. Rubio on the hand has great court vision and we all saw that. Irving isn't comparable to those two.

[picc]

Ofc wall is a better rebounder being a bigger guard. Better defense than a rookie? I'm so surprised.

Iman Shumpert? Avery Bradley? There are plenty of rookies who are good defenders. Wall has a real talent there, shouldn't downplay it.

[TheKingOfVa360]

Irving is an amazing passer. His assists are so deflated. He has better vision than Wall.

Ofc wall is a better rebounder being a bigger guard. Better defense than a rookie? I'm so surprised.

Irving does not have better vision than Wall, and no Irving isn't close to an amazing passer. Irving is closer to a combo guard than a pure pg. As a rookie Wall was a way better defender than Irving every will probably be. I really don't think you have seen Wall play more than once or twice, dude is already an elite rebounder and shot blocker. It seems like you are downplaying whatever Wall is good at and inflating whatever Irving is good at. Irving is an amazing shooter and plays a good pace, a nice little combo guard. He isn't a pure pg, he doesn't have great vision, and he sucks on defense.


"Wall has already shown plenty. Only Oscar Robertson, Damon Stoudamire, Tim Hardaway, Phil Ford and Chris Paul needed fewer games to score at least 2,000 points and hand out 1,000 assists, which Wall accomplished in 124 games. Since steals became a stat in 1970, Wall became the fastest player in NBA history to have 2,200 points, 1,000 assists, 600 rebounds, 200 steals and 90 blocks (134 games)."

[vincecarter4pres]

Tyreke Evans is blushing.

[hourockman]

Wow. That could be the absolute worst in the league - regardless of position.

Even Kobe is disgusted with those numbers.