John Wall is having his best season.
He’s posting career highs in points per game (19.7), assists per game (8.7), steals per game (1.9), 3-point percentage (36.0) and true shooting percentage (52.6). He’s led the Wizards in the playoffs for the first time in six seasons. He even made his first All-Star game.
Now, he might need to find a new source of motivation.
Left off the USA Basketball expanded roster, Wall has used that perceived slight to his advantage. But he might not be missing from that list for long (hat tip: Ben Standig of CSN Washington):
https://twitter.com/SpearsNBAYahoo/statuses/454016383618002944
When I predicted the USA Basketball roster for the 2016 Rio Olympics, six point guards – Stephen Curry (No. 2), Chris Paul (No. 9), Russell Westbrook (No. 10), Damian Lillard (No. 12), Kyrie Irving (No. 13) and Derrick Rose (No. 15) – made my top 15. It’s a crowd.
Wall is doing all the right things, but so are other promising American point guards. There’s nothing he can do but keep at it and hope his improvement is rewarded with a national-team selection.
For now, Wall is doing all he can. Even if he keeps on this course, that might not be enough.