Official John Wall Appreciation Thread

[hands11]

Can't imagine what Wall's assists numbers would look like if he had actual shooters around him. The fact that gets 8-9 per game says a lot.

http://espn.go.com/nba/player/gamelog/_ ... /john-wall

I think it is easy to imagine because he did it.

To often I think people think about shooter as people dropping bombs from 20+ feet out. Well, they can simply be players like Nene, Keveen who can hit mid range shoots and finish along with payers like Ves finishing.

I would not be surprised at all if Wall leads the league in assists next year. Rondo lead this year with 11.

If not the leader, he should be up there challenging.

[Mmat11]

Might as well post Wall's offseason goals in this thread.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wiz ... #pagebreak

John Wall’s second offseason will look much different from his first, as the Wizards point guard said he would avoid the summer league exhibition circuit and focus on improving his “jump shot, making threes, and mid-range floaters and try to add a post game.”

Wall will also work on discovering how to use different speeds on the floor. His more intense workouts won’t begin until he takes a month off to rest, but Wall said he would start by studying how Tony Parker and Chris Paul switch up speeds and run their teams this postseason.

“Those two, him and Chris Paul, in the playoffs, they are very in control of their team and they are smart type point guards that pick [you] apart throughout the whole game,” said Wall, who had also intended on watching Derrick Rose before his postseason came to an abrupt end after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in Chicago’s series opening win over Philadelphia.


I love how Wall takes constructive criticism about his game and is able to evaluate himself objectively. This is why he is a franchise player.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Wall gets it now.

I don't think we'll see many more long slumps or forced shots over a long period of time for him.

Wall is going to be regarded as a great player, after all, some day.

[fugop]

Can't imagine what Wall's assists numbers would look like if he had actual shooters around him. The fact that gets 8-9 per game says a lot.

http://espn.go.com/nba/player/gamelog/_ ... /john-wall

I think it is easy to imagine because he did it.

To often I think people think about shooter as people dropping bombs from 20+ feet out. Well, they can simply be players like Nene, Keveen who can hit mid range shoots and finish along with payers like Ves finishing.

I would not be surprised at all if Wall leads the league in assists next year. Rondo lead this year with 11.

If not the leader, he should be up there challenging.

It's about spacing as much as hitting jump shots. Wall needs room to operate in the lane, defenses need to pay for their rotations.

[fugop]

Aside: all Wall needs to do to put up all star numbers next year is only play on Tuesdays. He averaged 18/10/3 on 46% shooting & 25% 3P%, with 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks.

http://espn.go.com/nba/player/splits/_/ ... /john-wall

[DallasShalDune]

NBA Tuesday league!

[zardsfan]

Might as well post Wall's offseason goals in this thread.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wiz ... #pagebreak

John Wall’s second offseason will look much different from his first, as the Wizards point guard said he would avoid the summer league exhibition circuit and focus on improving his “jump shot, making threes, and mid-range floaters and try to add a post game.”

Wall will also work on discovering how to use different speeds on the floor. His more intense workouts won’t begin until he takes a month off to rest, but Wall said he would start by studying how Tony Parker and Chris Paul switch up speeds and run their teams this postseason.

“Those two, him and Chris Paul, in the playoffs, they are very in control of their team and they are smart type point guards that pick [you] apart throughout the whole game,” said Wall, who had also intended on watching Derrick Rose before his postseason came to an abrupt end after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in Chicago’s series opening win over Philadelphia.


I love how Wall takes constructive criticism about his game and is able to evaluate himself objectively. This is why he is a franchise player.

Just like Vesley, Wall seems to understand exactly what he needs to work on this summer.
I like what I am hearing from our young high draft picks... now lets see if they can get it done!

[Nivek]

Not to be too much of a wet blanket, but EVERY player should understand exactly what they need to work on over the summer. The coaching staff has an exit interview with every player and tells them exactly what they need to work over the summer. Every team does this.

[DallasShalDune]

Not to be too much of a wet blanket, but EVERY player should understand exactly what they need to work on over the summer. The coaching staff has an exit interview with every player and tells them exactly what they need to work over the summer. Every team does this.

Some players refuse to do anything about it, though.

While Blatche has said he's going to work on his weaknesses plenty of times, he never does. I think having faith in Wall isn't a bad idea at this point. He hasn't bitten us in the butt about it yet.

[Nivek]

I agree with what you're saying, Mr. ShalDune. I expect Wall to actually work on what the coaches are telling him to work on.

I'm just saying that it's not a sign of great insight or maturity that he can articulate what those weaknesses are. EVERY NBA player should be able to tick off their offseason work list. Honestly, it's no more impressive than reading a shopping list.

To me, the most encouraging thing in Wall's comments is him saying he's not playing in the exhibition games -- they're a developmental waste of time. And I'm encouraged that he's going to be studying film of good players. That's at least the rough sketch of a plan of attack. That's a good thing.

And lemme just say -- ALL of this is way more encouraging than the delusional claptrap Blatche puked into Mike Lee's recorder, and which Lee dutifully reported.

[tontoz]

Not to be too much of a wet blanket, but EVERY player should understand exactly what they need to work on over the summer. The coaching staff has an exit interview with every player and tells them exactly what they need to work over the summer. Every team does this.

Not every player comes out and says publicly what he needs to work on while implying that his preparation for the previous season was sub-par.

Of course that doesn't mean that results (or even effort) are a given.

[Nivek]

Good point, tontoz. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that Wall is acknowledging that he didn't get better this season and that he needs to work on his game. And I'm glad that he's apparently focused on the weak points of his game that were apparent when he was at Kentucky. I guess I just wish he'd taken the offseason work list the team gave him last year -- which probably was nearly identical -- and put in the work instead of doing the exhibition game circuit.

Ah well, bygones and what not. He's still sooooooooooooo young. If he puts in the work this offseason, he still has every chance of being terrific.

[Upper Decker]

After hearing Blatche mumble his way through 7 years of 'I promise I'm going to work hard and improve!' I refuse to believe anything an athlete says regarding their preparation. It's all about how they perform on the court. Wall can talk till the cows come home about what he's going to work on, but until defenses respect his jumper it's all falling on deaf ears.

[tontoz]

Good point, tontoz. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that Wall is acknowledging that he didn't get better this season and that he needs to work on his game. And I'm glad that he's apparently focused on the weak points of his game that were apparent when he was at Kentucky.

I guess I just wish he'd taken the offseason work list the team gave him last year -- which probably was nearly identical -- and put in the work instead of doing the exhibition game circuit.
Ah well, bygones and what not. He's still sooooooooooooo young. If he puts in the work this offseason, he still has every chance of being terrific.

I got the feeling early this year (nothing substantial to back it up) that Wall came into this season too cocky. Last year he was playing hurt most of the season. In his mind i think he believed that he could tear up the NBA if he was healthy.

I think this season was a reality check for him. There are a lot of other great athletes in the league that aren't going to let him waltz to the rim at will. Other teams gameplan to make life tougher for him. If he wants to be great he will have to develop his skills. That seems obvious to you and me but for a young/athletic guy like him it might not have been so obvious.

[ST21]

I got the feeling early this year (nothing substantial to back it up) that Wall came into this season too cocky. Last year he was playing hurt most of the season. In his mind i think he believed that he could tear up the NBA if he was healthy.

I think this season was a reality check for him. There are a lot of other great athletes in the league that aren't going to let him waltz to the rim at will. Other teams gameplan to make life tougher for him. If he wants to be great he will have to develop his skills. That seems obvious to you and me but for a young/athletic guy like him it might not have been so obvious.

spot on. year 3 is def the make or break year for him. i have all the confidence in the world he will accept the challenge and thrive.

[hands11]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wiz ... _blog.html

Magic 8 ball says.

Wall is going to be a beast next year.

I stand by my recent prediction that he will be or will challenge for most assists per game next year.

I give Randy a lot of credit for reaching John. As John has mention, Randy is up front, fair and honest with the players. He has been working on these guys since he took over. No surprise we are hearing he right messages from these young players.

Wall, Nene, Ves, KS and Booker is nice core. C Singleton started to show some sign of getting in a grove down the stretch. He should be a lot more solid next year hitting that 3 ball and slashing more. He has a challenging rookie year going against all those good SFs

They just have to fill out the roster. What I think made a huge difference down the stretch was that they had a 10 deep rotation of player so they could keep rolling in the line ups. If they just had an impact back up PG, it would have looked even better. To be good next year, they have to keep that mature depth. James Singleton types really helped settle down the younger players. But those younger players will now be 2nd year and 3rd year players. That makes a huge difference.

[hands11]

Good point, tontoz. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that Wall is acknowledging that he didn't get better this season and that he needs to work on his game. And I'm glad that he's apparently focused on the weak points of his game that were apparent when he was at Kentucky.

I guess I just wish he'd taken the offseason work list the team gave him last year -- which probably was nearly identical -- and put in the work instead of doing the exhibition game circuit.
Ah well, bygones and what not. He's still sooooooooooooo young. If he puts in the work this offseason, he still has every chance of being terrific.

I got the feeling early this year (nothing substantial to back it up) that Wall came into this season too cocky. Last year he was playing hurt most of the season. In his mind i think he believed that he could tear up the NBA if he was healthy.

I think this season was a reality check for him. There are a lot of other great athletes in the league that aren't going to let him waltz to the rim at will. Other teams gameplan to make life tougher for him. If he wants to be great he will have to develop his skills. That seems obvious to you and me but for a young/athletic guy like him it might not have been so obvious.

Oh, no doubt. That horse was beaten a long time ago. He was tearing up the summer league and come in trying to out run everyone and he looked like a crash dummy. That is when some of us were bashing the crap out of him for being an idiot and clueless. Then the light went on. Then off. Then on. Then off. Then finally on and it stayed on.

Randy, Nene and a season of hard knocks finally got him to realize what he needed to do. That is in part why he finished so strong. I trust he gets it now. He will be a pure PG first. I mean a complete pure PG. He will manage the offense, get his teammates involved and step in his scoring when needed. And fast break end to end when he feels it is open. I also think he will draw more fouls.

I have gained a lot more respect for John down the stretch and now into the offseason. I have complete faith he will achieve what he know understands. He is gaining wisdom. That along with his raw skills will allow him to reach his #1 pick status.

He is going to have some absolutely monster games next year. 20 assists is in the cards at some point. He is going to jump into the double assist category. If he just keeps his scoring in line you are talking 16 pts 10-12 assists. If he can keep that up for years to come, that is a stellar career. But I suspect his scoring climb as well. He will have his 20 pts 10 plus assist season soon enough. Maybe even next year.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

I have read many times Wall needs to be paired with an accurate SG, like Eric Gordon, because Wall doesn't shoot the perimeter shot well at all. Beal is most frequently mentioned as a potential great SG, because he can shoot well, defend, and rebound. I have heard him compared to Ray Allen by Billy Donovan. He's great, but I think another player is an even better fit next to Wall.

I had an epiphany about putting another slasher/distributer/leader next to Wall. That could work, too. This player seems perfectly tuned to play with Wall.



http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1162 ... om-in-pros

[Will Barton] has the athleticism and explosiveness to translate well to the NBA.

His combination of scoring, rebounding and leadership is impressive, and he significantly improved his jump shot in his last season at Memphis.

The thing about Barton is that every time Wall slashes, he can follow him and either get a long rebound or receive an interior pass himself. Pairing Wall, a guy who misses a lot of shots, with a REBOUNDER was my epiphany. Barton is not an Evan Turner or Tyreke Evans, who will stop the ball or who has to have the ball to be effective. Barton moves without the ball and is an ultimate slasher, well matched to play with Wall. For whatever reason, I keep getting stuck on this player for the Wizards. Don't forget his Baltimore connections, either. Denmon is no doubt going to be good. Crowder is the most underrated. I love Tyler Zeller. For this draft, Will Barton's like Faried was for me this time last year--he's my favorite player.

I like the idea of having another greyhound (that's the type player John Wall is) at G. They could put a lot of pressure on teams and could give the Wizards a "Showtime Laker" or even a speedy transition team like Wade is with James.

[MDStar]

Wouldn't MKG be a better version of Barton? If the idea is to put another slasher next to him, which i'm not so sure is best but for the sake of conversation, MKG is a do everything except shoot kind of prospect.

[nate33]

The thing about Barton is that every time Wall slashes, he can follow him and either get a long rebound or receive an interior pass himself. Pairing Wall, a guy who misses a lot of shots, with a REBOUNDER was my epiphany. Barton is not an Evan Turner or Tyreke Evans, who will stop the ball or who has to have the ball to be effective. Barton moves without the ball and is an ultimate slasher, well matched to play with Wall. For whatever reason, I keep getting stuck on this player for the Wizards.

Bad idea. You shouldn't play a SG for his offensive rebounding prowess because he's the guy that needs to get back on defense when Wall drives the lane. If your SG crashes the offensive glass, the other team will get a ton of fast breaks.

CCJ, there's a reason why conventional wisdom is convention. Stop trying to break it all the time. Shooting matters. There's no way around it. If you can't shoot, you can't space the floor. Defenses will pack the paint and go under the high screen. Adding a poor shooting SG on this team is a really bad idea.