[moximusParticipant]

went 1-9 again tonight …Wall has been regressing thus far this season, looks pretty lost and mad most of the times.  A lot of expectation that he would be surpassing Rose and Westbrook for being taller and faster, do you guys still think that is going to happen this season?

[FastAndFuriousParticipant]

 As I said in the thread when they were playing Atlanta!

He looks the same, out of control and no signs of Improvement on the jumpshot, he still wants to drive,drive,drive.

I told you guys he still has a long way to go, he will be a 2nd tier guard until he improves on his jumpshot, and learning when to go and not to go, he is a 7-10 PG not top 5.

[Scottoant93Participant]

I never thought he would surpass westbrook and rose this season, but i did think he was going to be way better then he is now. I think Flip Saunders is out as coach soon, and the wiz need to make some trade, they have some horrible players and i think wall is getting irratated from it.

edit- almost forgot to answer the main question, I think he bounces back as the season goes on and avg numbers close to his rookie season(probably less assists, and slightly more points) he needs more help on that team

[EntropyParticipant]

He’ll get better as the season goes along. He has a marginally improved jumpshot but nothing else has improved much from his rookie season. If he doesn’t show signs of improvement over the next 10 games then we should get worried.

[Winning_TimeParticipant]

 nobody’s gonna be doin the john wall if this keeps up 🙁

[Wavy BagelsParticipant]

[F_DA_POParticipant]

Didn’t Calapari say Wall was the best prospect he ever coached, even better than Rose and Evans at Memphis?

[TheLastWordParticipant]

He’s still playing far too much playground ball. Needs to have better shot selection and make an effort on D. His maturity level and work ethic are found behind Rose’s at this point.

[EntropyParticipant]

He’s not bad on D, he had 3 blocks against the Bucks as is averaging 1.7 blocks a game and 2+ steals. He does have occasional lapses but overall it’s not bad.

^Wall has great work ethic, where did you here he doesn’t work hard?

[Anton123Participant]

 John Wall looks bigger, faster, more athletic

He did for some reason stop passing the ball, I mean he averaged 8+ assists as a rookie and that was what I loved most about him, now he’s forcing it on offense and that’s clearly not working

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

Wall is surrounded by a bunch of young negative immature players and a lame duck coach…The Wizards really need to change the culture of that team,and they can start by getting rid of McGee or Blatche..As long as those 2 boneheads are in the starting lineup,that team will remain a mess…

[butidonthavemoney]

RUDEBOY wins this topic. Blatche and McGee must go. I’d find a replacement for Young as well. In fact, they just need to detox the entire effing roster.

I know he’s struggling right now, but John Wall isn’t the problem with the Wizards.

[WizardofOzParticipant]

 @ RUDEBOY and butidonthavemoney

I agree with trading Blatche, but not McGee. McGee has shown improvement in eaach of the 4 years he’s been in the league, and even though he isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, he tries on a consistent basis. 

Blatche is a lazy bum. He’s shown no improvement from last year, and is still relying on the moves he’s learned in HS. The guy doesn’t have the fire or work ethic to reach his potential.

[FastAndFuriousParticipant]

 Hell naw, he’s not the problem, he’s got bad influences around him, guys that seem like they dont care about winning, so now it seems like he’s trying to do it all by himself which is NOT gonna work.

When I watched them play the Hawks, he just kept forcing things that werent there, I mean he’s probably the fastest guy in the league, but he cant always think his speed is gonna get him to the spots he wants to get to everytime, but I am starting to think he’s forcing things because he feels he’s out there by himself.

Blatche is a effin bum, Mcghee has potential but he seems like he will never reach it, all he wants to do is catch lobs and block shots.

I’d keep Jordan Crawford,Nick Young and John Wall, and start them get an upgrade at the PF and C position and rock out with that and see what happens.

[RafterParticipant]

In Wall’s defense nobody else is playing too great either, i suppose from a statistical standpoint, McGee has done okay but in reality he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed when he plays. Overall, Blatche hasn’t been there, neither has Young, Crawford is doing okay, Lewis has been poor, you’d think a vet like Lewis would take control but no.

I’d expect someone (probably Wall) that’ll break this routine and start playing well, since Wall is considered the star of the team he gets singled out but nobody is showing the desire to step into Wall’s shoes and become the star for a night or two either, which doesn’t say much about the Wizards and the amount of pressure they put on Wall to succeed.

Wall’s potential is up there with the highest i’ve seen in any sport, but in the present, it doesn’t account for much, i expect Wall to bounce back, it’s just a case of almost everyone playing badly at once, they’ll probably start playing well at the same time soon. Because of that, i expect an inconsistent season from the Wizards unless a good trade occurs.

 

[FilipinoElla]

soo, what would be the good trade for mcgee? and blacthe?

[BigDParticipant]

The Wizards are an absolute mess, but it’s not so much the roster makeup that bothers me, because they are talent laden. They’re just dumb, have no direction, no identity, i don’t even know if i can call them a team, just no chemistry on the floor.

Rashard Lewis needs to go, Blatche is like another version of Vin Baker, just overweight but talented and with no pride. I think a complete reshuffle of the rotations is in order, give Booker and Seraphin the bulk of the minutes at the PF, slide Singleton and Vesely into the SF and spot up minutes at PF for Vesely. And i know McGee is a bit of a headcase, but i think half his problem is Flip Saunders just has no control over this team, he doesn’t have a defined role, they need a coach with authority and who will actually place a gameplan that suits the players on the roster, these guys should be a run and gun get out in the lanes with plenty of dunks. They’re athletic as hell. They have scary defensive potential, McGee, Booker, Singleton as a frontcourt and Wall could be a terrific defender.

[HitsterParticipant]

I’d like to see Seraphin and Booker get some extra minutes and Vesley can give a defensive presence at SF. Maybe bench Blatche and use Lewis as a stretch PF to start. The team does seem to need a strong minded coach who would preach defence maybe short term someone like Larry Brown who would be forced to play the younger guys but could help them all to develop.

Who’d take Blatche I don’t know but if you want a totally fun idea, the Lakers still have the Odom exception and have Josh McRoberts as their starting PF so would they consider Blatche a possible bench scoring option?

The Lakers locker room would put Blatche in his place and on a possible contender he’d have to knuckle down as he may have shot at getting to a final.

 

[WizardofOzParticipant]

 He hasn’t played well at all, but I’m telling you, NO PG would be successful with this garbage roster. NONE! He tries to get his teammates involved, but hwo do you expect some to get assists when they can’t even make friggin open jumpers? He would look much better on another roster. But I have to admit that Jordan Carwford ran the offense better than Wall last night.

But I agree I’m not seeing much improvement. The guy only plays at one speed, and is always out of control driving to the rim. He’s usually going so fast that he even misses bunnies an easy layups at the rim. And he still struggles at finishing at the rim. He doesn’t have the srength to take contact consistently at the rim. His main move in the half court is driving to the rim out of control, and complaining to the refs when he doesn’t have a call. He needs to watch film of Gilbert Arenas finishing circa 2006. I can’t really tell how much progress he’s made on his jumpshot. His jumpper looked pretty good vs. ATL, but he hasn’t really had many opportunities to shoot. And he needs to improve his whole offensive repertoire. His handle is too loose, doesn’t have many moves, and has no floater (didn’t he say he would work on that in the offseason?).

[WizardofOzParticipant]

Rose went a combined 13 for 35 (37%) with 4.6 assist per game in his first three games as a sophomore. Wall has had very similar numbers so we just need to be a little patient!!!

[FilipinoElla]

 Could doug collins be the coach that would fit the young wizards, he is well known for developing young team, though he is still in 76ers,

[surveParticipant]

I wouldnt say that Coach Cal was off-base by saying Wall was the best prospect he ever coached.  There are things naturally that he did better than Rose.  Rose’s progression and approach to the game mentally has soared since he has been in the league.  Its going to take Reke some time too, because he doesnt have the best puzzle pieces around him either.

Kobe would NOT tolerate a player like Blatche.  Blatche is pretty immature…but probably worse than that, you cant play with Kobe and not have good work ethic.  McRoberts fits better because if you remember, McRoberts was criticised for his work ethic, but once he got to the league, he had a rude awakening.  McRoberts has now excepted his role on teams.  Maybe Blatche will, but he has way more talent than McRoberts but has been more problematic on and off the court and in terms of ego, thats bad.

Rashard Lewis has apparently lost more than we think.  Seattle’s Lewis was a predecessor to Kevin Durant.  His play rapidly declined every since Turkoglu left the Magic.  He cant even put up numbers on a bad team now.

Its really hard for me to determine who is better between Young and Crawford, one brings something to the table that the other doesnt and neither are great defenders, particularly when it comes to team defense.

Playing Singleton now should be a priority, they are not going to lose any more games than they have to this point with him logging major minutes.

[OllstarParticipant]

This team can’t just keep rebuilding. They got these players in let em figure it out. You think great teams are built off only good moments? No, ya they are struggling and ya they dont look great but this will only shape their future. Give em another season before you blow everything up. If you trade Blatche and Mcgee you probably won’t be seeing equal value coming back. If you think about it Wall is the leader of this team, if he  can’t control his teammates it is he who is failing. Hold you players accountable dont just dougie in front of them.

[LawDeeZeeParticipant]

d will is also playing on an atrocious roster (probably even worse than washington’s) and although he isn’t playing the greatest basketball himself this season, he doesn’t constantly go flying down the lane totally out of control. wall’s limited offensive game is the problem here, in comparing him to someone like rose you can argue that maybe wall is faster, but he is not stronger and not a better finisher at the rim.

 

wall is still a tremendous prospect but if you’re a wizards fan, it might be time to start getting concerned about his lack of progression from last year into this year. the biggest thing he needs to do is know when to pick his spots, when it’s alright to force the issue, and learn when it’s time to just let the game come to him. also he needs to stay under control when on the attack so that he’s able to react to defenders rather than getting caught in the air and throwing a bad pass or picking up a charging foul.

[sheltwon3Participant]

Sacramento have Hickson and Thompson who both could be starting on many team on the bench.  Wiz should sweeten the deal and move Blatche soon.  McGee could still work as a back up because of his potential and already there shot blocking ability.  They need to get some veteran big men for the bench and move a few of their young assets. 

 

Al Jefferson is bad for Utah but he could do wonders for Wizards.  Utah may be looking to give him up for young talent and Blatche.

 

Also I am sure that Wiz could move depth and possibly one of their shooting guards for either Wes Johnson or Beasley.

 

There are trades that could be made but team seem to not want to do anything.

The NBA is not suffering because of lack of talent.  It is just that you have some guys that should be starters or have that potential on the bench as some team have waited to long to stock up talent.  Houston was planning a move but now they have a bunch of young talent and not enough minutes.

Minny and Wiz are in the same boat.  They could move some young talent and get some veterans.  Too many young players on a team does not work too well except for OKC.

[HitsterParticipant]

The point about John Wall needing to slow down is an excellent one, Flip Saunders is not running the D’Antoni 8 second offence and anyway John Wall does not have Steve Nash’s court vision. But if Wall does not have another offensive presence apart from Lewis’s 3 point range and sometimes Young and Blatche then he will take games on by himself. This is not good for the team or Wall himself as it will burn him out and if he goes straight to the basket he’ll be mixing it with the opposition frontcourt and the size difference will mean he’ll come off worse.

The more I read about Washington it seems like Flip has totally lost the team and cannot set up plays for the team as a whole. He has an assistant in Sam Cassell who played as a shoot first PG for over 15 years in the NBA and helped feed some of the greatest big men ever. Surely he should be detailed to work one on one with John Wall as often as possible to help improve his game. But with the lockout this could not be done off season and with the packed schedule, it would be hard to do during the regular season.  

Washington luckily can make moves if required with Lewis’s contract still a possible amnesty next summer for them or another team only leaving Blatche on the books with a nasty contract. The team only went into full rebuild a couple of years ago so have only had two drafts to start this with. I wonder if they regret trading the rights to Rubio in 2009 now, Rubio alongside John Wall would look rather good.

 

 

[HaleParticipant]

 19 7 and 8 with 1 TO. This is why you don’t overreact a week into the season.

[apb540Participant]

The Wizards ARE John Wall. They join the Cavs, Pistons, Kings, etc. as one of the most pathetic teams in the NBA. The Wizards need like 5 lottery picks and a new coach to even think about being relevant within the next 3-5 years. 

[WizardofOzParticipant]

 Good game from Wall tonight. The haters are gonna come rolling back once this good picks it up. I love overreaction threads!

[EntropyParticipant]

Good game. In a few more weeks we should be saying, this is just a normal game for him. 19/8 is decent.

[FastAndFuriousParticipant]

Good game for Wall, but I still have yet to see the Improvements he made.

 

I didnt catch tonights game, but I did watch 2 preseason games and 3 regular season games.

 

I mean I’m a Wall fan, and I also understand Basketball

 

Wall is 6’4 he is damn near the biggest PG(Height wise,not strength) And is the fastest from end to end.

 

He is a Pro, he is going to have games where he dominates, even without improvement, because he is just so physically gifted.

 

BUT I still didnt see the jumpshot improvement, the improved ballhandling,the patience, none of that.

 

I still saw the John Wall who just trys to outrun everybody, attack the lane wildly, the same loose handle, the same fake using the pick slash hard to the opposite hand and get to the rim, same things he was using in HS, no advanced ball handling skills, none of that.

 

Deron Williams, Chris Paul know the game and have Elite ball handling skills and good quickness and can knock down the jumper thats why they are always labeled one and two for PG’s or at least far as pure PG’s go.

 

Derrick Rose has advanced ball handling, and can finish at the rim, and has improved on his 3 point shot, and can get others involved, not to mention, depend on who you ask he is the most athletic one playing the game.

 

Rajon Rondo freak athlete,knows the game,super speed,super quickness, gets others involved,great rebounder at his position.

 

Russell Westbrook depend on who you ask lol and he is the most athletic PG in the game, you ask me HE IS the most athletic PG, this is who Wall reminds me of tho, BUT Westbrook mid range game is good enough to keep the D honest for the  most part, and Russ has a type of Explosiveness nobody has, and in case you forgot he had 58 dunks last year, Rose AND Wall combined only had 52.

 

But Wall doesnt have the explosiveness or strength Westbrook has so he cant finish at the rim as well or with contact as well either,

 

Wall is a work in progress, he will be good I’m not questioning that, I’m questioning his improvements this year, when will we see it, because he looked the exact same in the games I saw which was 5 of them.

 

[FastAndFuriousParticipant]

 NBATV is re running the Celtics and Wizards game at 3:30am I’m going to watch it and see Wall for myself.

[WizardofOzParticipant]

 Wall played a little more under control today, and did a much better job finishing at the rim. He did a good job of finding people in the half court, but nobody can make an open shot. And Rodno schooled him, but there’s no shame in that. Rondo is one of the best players in the league. But I think Wall played too many minutes. Wall played 39 min compared to Rondo’s 33, and Mack played under two minutes. It’s important to conserve energy since we play tomorrow.

[omphalosParticipant]

I think the problem facing Wall is that he’s picked up some bad habits from all those games during the lockout. He was absolutely destroying the weak D they play in those games by using his athleticism, and I think it’s going to take him some time to re-adjust to NBA level defensive intensity. It would explain his scoring inefficiency at the very least.

As far as the Wizards are concerned on the whole, they need a new coach, I’d be rolling with Mike Woodson, a guy who can relate to the young guys in the NBA, and develops young players. Woodson might not win you a championship, but he’ll do the legwork so a championship calibre coach might look at the roster and take the job when the young guys are ready.

Blatche needs to go, and if I were the Wizards I’d be starting Singleton at the 3, and Vesely at the 4. Jan has the length and athleticism to play the 3, but he can also defend the 4, and would be a nightmare for some of the slower 4s to have to guard, especially in the open court. Singleton would be that glue guy for them, and a huge upgrade over Lewis, who should be amnestied or traded as soon as possible.

On paper the Wizards have a bright future, but there are too many bad locker room presences and I have no confidence in Flip as their coach. Hopefully Leonsis will see the problems forming and take steps to fix them before they miss the boat on this young core.

[Author]

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