Former Washington Wizards All-Star and NBA All-Rookie Team member John Wall hasn’t put his NBA playing days to bed just yet. Wall has been working out in the gym and staying in shape as best he can over the last couple of years. He’s also spent some time in the broadcasting booth in an attempt to keep up with the game of basketball on the ground floor. That ground floor is where he hopes to gain another shot sooner rather than later.
Former Wizards Star Hopes to ‘Go Out on His Own Terms’
Former Washington Wizards Star John Wall Keeping NBA Return Dream Alive
In a story by Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press, the details of Wall’s life since his last game in the NBA came from the man himself. The vulnerability and openness shared expressed someone who is not yet willing to give up on the game that has made him millions upon millions of dollars—the game he still loves.
Wall was the number one draft selection in 2010 and began his playing career with the Wizards. He and Bradly Bealformed one of the league’s best backcourts at the time. Wall went to five All-Star games and made the All-NBA, All-Rookie, and All-Defensive teams on one occasion each. Before injuries began to take the face of a familiar foe, Wall was one of the league’s most talented point guards and gifted scorers. Unfortunately, his skill could not completely overcome all the injuries, and Wall was eventually out of the league.
He last played during the 2022-23 season with the Los Angeles Clippers, appearing in just 34 of 82 games that year. While he hasn’t shot a ball for an NBA team since then, Wall continues to hit the gym and get shots up in Miami, where he lives in the offseason. Despite not playing in the NBA for a couple of years, Wall hasn’t retired and still hopes a last opportunity to join a team comes knocking. As he stated, that is a door he would open for one last chance.
“It’d mean the world,” Wall said of a potential return to the league. “You want to go out on your own terms. I want to finish it the way I want. If I play my last game, I want to walk off the court my way.”
Wizards Haven’t Been the Same Since the Wall & Beal Backcourt
Beal joined Wall in the Wizards backcourt two seasons after Wall’s first, and what a dynamic backcourt it was. The Wizards missed the playoffs in their first season together, but the chemistry between the two was growing rapidly. The following two years (2014, 2015), they led Washington to back-to-back Eastern Conference Semifinals and again two seasons later (2017). Unfortunately, despite the duo’s stellar play and chemistry, Washington could never move past the semis. Only a couple of years after their last semifinal appearance in ’17, injuries really began to rear its ugly head. Both Beal and Wall were victims, and it started to derail the team and each player’s role in Washington.
The Wizards have never been the same since Wall and Beal were the reason they were close to competitive. Wall’s last season in Washington was 2018-19, and Beal’s was not long after, 2022-23.
NBA Return is a Longshot, but Never Lose Hope
It’s difficult to imagine Wall getting that phone call he wishes for. Likely, he can still play, shoot, and contribute to some degree, but to be out of the league for as long as he has been already, it may very well be over. Thankfully, his presence in the NBA has not entirely vanished, as Wall has recently taken up broadcasting. He appeared in a booth for the G League’s Orlando Winter Showcase this past weekend. If playing in the NBA is no longer in the cards for Wall, perhaps calling games is.
The post Former Wizards Star Hopes to ‘Go Out on His Own Terms’ appeared first on Last Word On Basketball.