John Wall is the best PG in the East right now

[tontoz]

Finally got the chance to watch the Atlanta game. Another strong game by Wall. While he isn't having a breakout season so far it does seem like he is making progress. He had a bad stretch of play and is clearly getting worn down by the minutes, but his overall numbers are looking pretty good.

In the interview after the game he emphasized how important it was to take it to the basket. He obviously spent a lot of time working on his jumper in the offseason and was too jumper happy for awhile. He seems to be over that now.

19.6/9.2 is pretty strong. His efficiency should start creeping up since he is committed to shooting 3s and taking it to the basket. He is getting to the foul line 5.6 times a game, which has been on the rise as well.

His late game intensity, in spite of all the minutes he plays, has been fun to watch. Yes he needs to use better judgement at times but he has clearly been trying, and at time succeeding, to will the team to victory.

[Illmatic21]

ESPN ranked Wall as the 5th best player under 25:

1. Anthony Davis
2. Paul George
3. Andre Drummond
4. James Harden

5John Wall
AGE: 23DOB: 9/6/90HT: 6-4WT: 195POS: PG
PPG: 19.6APG: 9.1RPG: 4.43-YR WARP: 35.0

Elhassan: Wall is beginning to fulfill the promise that got him drafted first overall in 2010 (amazing what being healthy can do for your game's perception). He's still not a consistent enough shooter, but he's improved tremendously, and that improvement has opened up passing opportunities for him. Defensively, has the tools to be the antidote to the league's class of super athletic PGs.

Thorpe: Improving his perimeter shot is a no-brainer, even just a midrange jump shot over smaller defenders, but he has work to do to become a better transition finisher as well. As perhaps the fastest ball-pusher in the league, Wall has many chances to outrace defenders but he often struggles to focus on making the shot rather than drawing contact or getting it off cleanly.

Pelton: Point guards tend to peak late, so Wall might still have room to grow after emerging as an All-Star-caliber player this season.

Previous rank: NR | PLAYER CARD

6. Blake Griffin
7. Kyrie Irving
8. Damian Lillard
9. Demarcus Cousins
10. Derrick Favors


John WASN'T EVEN RANKED last year, and now they have him leapfrogging guys like Lillard, Irving, Griffin who were ranked in the top 5-10 previously. People are gradually starting to realize the immense impact he has on the court.

[pancakes3]

Flirting with a 20/10 as a pg is no joke. There have only been 20 20/9 seasons in the NBA (and 7 guys between those seasons).

Out of the guys (Deron Williams, Isiah Thomas, Chris Paul, Magic, Kevin Johnson, Tim Hardaway, Michael Adams) I'd say Wall is most like KJ which is amazing in itself.

[tontoz]

FMP

[GhostsOfGil]

If Wall gets hurt and misses any time we can pretty much expect to lose almost every game. It would be seriously ugly.

Thanks Tontoz. Now we know who to blame when Wall goes down with an ACL tear on Friday.

[nate33]

Flirting with a 20/10 as a pg is no joke. There have only been 20 20/9 seasons in the NBA (and 7 guys between those seasons).

Out of the guys (Deron Williams, Isiah Thomas, Chris Paul, Magic, Kevin Johnson, Tim Hardaway, Michael Adams) I'd say Wall is most like KJ which is amazing in itself.

It's actually much more rare than that once you account for pace. Those teams of the 80's and early 90's had a lot more possessions. If you adjust those 20 seasons to the pace the Wizards currently play, then only 8 seasons would have broken the 20/9 mark: Chris Paul (twice), Magic (thrice), KJ (twice) and DWill (once).

[Silvie Lysandra]

If Wall gets hurt and misses any time we can pretty much expect to lose almost every game. It would be seriously ugly.

Thanks Tontoz. Now we know who to blame when Wall goes down with an ACL tear on Friday.

"With the first pick in the 2014 NBA draft, the Washington Bullets (yes bullets because a man can dream") select Andrew Wiggins"

[tontoz]

FMP

[Illmatic21]

If Wall gets hurt and misses any time we can pretty much expect to lose almost every game. It would be seriously ugly.

Thanks Tontoz. Now we know who to blame when Wall goes down with an ACL tear on Friday.

Seriously, please edit that out man

[TheKingOfVa360]

Looks like Wall has no shot at starting the all star game. Irving who's been horrible and Drose who is hurt have more votes than him.


Backcourt:
1. Dwyane Wade (Mia) 396,279
2. Kyrie Irving (Cle) 365,712
3. Derrick Rose (Chi) 272,410
4. John Wall (Was) 124,851
5. Ray Allen (Mia) 99,464
6. Rajon Rondo (Bos) 80,889
7. Deron Williams (BKN) 44,282
8. George Hill (Ind) 42,536
9. Evan Turner (Phi) 33,605
10. Mario Chalmers (Mia) 32,996

http://www.nba.com/2013/news/12/12/2014-all-star-ballot-results-1/index.html

[nate33]

At least he's in the top 4. So even if ignorant fans voted, Wall would make the AS Game. It seems like a pretty good bet that he'll make it as a sub.

What's funny is that arguably the 2nd best guard in the conference is Afflalo, and he's not in the top 10.

[TheKingOfVa360]

At least he's in the top 4. So even if ignorant fans voted, Wall would make the AS Game. It seems like a pretty good bet that he'll make it as a sub.

What's funny is that arguably the 2nd best guard in the conference is Afflalo, and he's not in the top 10.

I noticed that too, Afflao should be in the all-star game. Also Jeff Teague not even in the top 10

If Wall keeps playing good when our games are on tv, then he has a legit shot at getting that 2nd guard spot.

[TheKingOfVa360]

On ESPN there is an article picking the All-Star starters. They have Wall and Affalo starting

BACKCOURT ALL-STARS
Starters

John Wall, Washington Wizards
With Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo out with knee injuries, Wall gets the nod somewhat by default, but he probably deserves an All-Star bid anyway. His shiny new 3-point shot has vaulted his speedy game to a 20.9 player efficiency rating, which leads all East point guards. And then there's this: According to NBA.com, the Wizards are a preposterous 29.7 points per 100 possessions better with Wall on the floor than with him on the bench. All-Star starter and a franchise savior.


Arron Afflalo, Orlando Magic
"Spellcheck" could be warming this seat for incumbent starter Dwyane Wade, but the Orlando 2-guard's production has been absolutely stellar so far this season. Put it this way: Wade and Afflalo have nearly identical PERs but Afflalo has sustained that level for 300 more minutes than Wade. That's no small thing. Afflalo's scoring 21.6 points per game thanks to lights-out shooting from deep (43.6 percent) along with a career-high 18.9 percent assist rate. Unlike Wade, Afflalo's a super conservative defender, but his body of work has been more impressive than Wade's. Wade will almost certainly start, but if this was based on merit, Afflalo could be going to New Orleans as a starter.

[tontoz]

Wall just has to keep doing what he is doing and he is in. I just hope he doesn't get worn out playing so many minutes due to the suck behind him.

[TheKingOfVa360]

1. East backcourt All-Star starter: Kyrie Irving, John Wall or who?
East All-Star Selections


Michael Pina, Red94: John Wall. Wall is second in the league in assists, is shooting it better than Irving this season from almost everywhere on the court and remains an absolute blur with the ball. He has been one of the three best point guards in the league this season, even if that designation comes with an injury-related asterisk.

Robert Silverman, Knickerblogger: Wall. He's an absolute hellion on the fast break, and when his jumper's on, he's as devastatingly explosive a player as you'll find. Jeff Teague certainly deserves a spot on the roster as well; given the huge leap forward he has taken as a decision-maker and floor general in Mike Budenholzer's system.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, TrueHoop Network: Wall. Wall has been the more impressive player and he has played with more consistency than Irving. Washington has also, more or less, met expectations so far. Kyrie's monster 37-point game against New York was notable in how great he looked but also notable in how rarely Kyrie's looked like himself this season. I can't blame Irving for struggling, what with a Cleveland roster that looks like intentional sabotage, but his production has taken a dive this season.

Tom Sunnergren, Hoop76: Wall. Michael Carter-Williams received close consideration -- and, yes, that a rookie with a sub-40 field-goal percentage got a long look for an All-Star spot tells you all you need to know about the sorry state of point guard play in the East -- but Wall, by virtue of his improving 3-point shot and perfect attendance on game day, gets the nod.

Michael Wallace, Heat Index: Wall. Not only does he hold the statistical edge over conference counterparts at the de facto point guard position, he also has improved his defense and has led the Wizards to one of their best starts in years. Irving, an All-Star last season, is flashier. Wall is more consistent and complete. His All-Star level of play started late last season, too.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/page/5-on-5-131212/east-all-star-picks

Wall finally getting some respect.

[tontoz]

Yeah but......David Falk thinks he sucks.

[Nivek]

Because of the way the league has changed the ballots (3 frontcourt players and 2 guards) Wall is the only Wizard to rate as an All-Star in PPA. He's actually the most productive guard in the East so far, which is nice. Ariza would be close if it was broken down by PG-SG-SF-PF-C.

[mhd]

Because of the way the league has changed the ballots (3 frontcourt players and 2 guards) Wall is the only Wizard to rate as an All-Star in PPA. He's actually the most productive guard in the East so far, which is nice. Ariza would be close if it was broken down by PG-SG-SF-PF-C.

Really, I'd thought Lebron & George would rate significantly ahead of Ariza. Maybe Melo as well (although he doesn't fair well in many statistical analysis)

[B-easy]

Genuinely surprised Rose and Irving have more votes. It doesn't really matter though he'll get in as reserve.

[mhd]

All=NBA teams matter more than all-star games. Chris Bosh has been on like 10 all star teams, but ONLY 1 all-nba team.