Once again, John Wall is in the focus of the media attention, but this time, one of the best point guards in the league is interesting not because of his plays.
Things are not looking good for the Washington Wizards. Not at all. At this point, they stand at 8 wins and 14 defeats, occupying the 10th position in the Eastern Conference. Orlando Magic, who sit at place No.8 which leads to the postseason, have 11-12.
The latest defeat came in Philadelphia, against the 76ers who pretty much demolished the Wizards with 123-98.
John Wall had an outburst after the game, during the press conference when asked about the technical foul he received in the second quarter. The 5-time All-Star said that he doesn’t have any respect at all towards the referees, and that they don’t appreciate him enough.
“I have nothing to say to them. I have no respect for them. Simple as that,” Wall stated. “I get the same excuse every time. Just cause I’m stronger than everybody I don’t get those calls.”
The end of John Wall’s postgame interview turned to the topic of him picking up a fifth technical foul tonight.
Here’s the exchange and Wall’s responses: pic.twitter.com/1TFSMhrB2a
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) December 1, 2018
The reason for all this was the above-mentioned call. Wall had made a layup after which he clapped his hands in referee’s direction. Now, the officials thought that Wall’s gesture is towards them and that he asked for a foul. Others had an opinion that the Wizards superstar celebrated the score, and 12-0 run his team made.
And really, the guests who were behind 21 points, 44-23, had an excellent sequence in which they managed to shit to momentum and the start playing as they were the hosts. Unfortunately, that run was interrupted with the referee’s decision. Afterwards, Sixers started a 20-7 run which eventually decided the match.
It was Wall’s sixth technical foul of the season. He holds the second spot in the league behind Andre Drummond in that category.
The No.1 pick from the 2010 draft, had one question for the reporters.
“How many free throws did I shoot today?”.
Someone answered “two”.
“There’s your answer,” Wall said. “I got a tech for clapping my hands. I got fouled a couple of times. Used to it by now.”
Most of the experts do agree on the fact that Wall is a dominant playmaker who is much stronger than his opponents, and that sometimes the officials don’t recognize this.
Now, this isn’t the first time for this player to behave a bit problematic since the season started. Though, this might be more emotional than problematic. But his verbal incident with Washington’s head coach Scott Brooks, and calling out teammates after a bad start, are clear proof that Wall has a little bit thinner nerves this season when compared to the previous ones.
Looks like @JohnWall has been watching @JM3_Coach PHYSICAL DODGING videos!!! #REPSpic.twitter.com/HbVMk9knpQ
— COMMITTED COMBINE™ (@coachpughlax) December 1, 2018
A bad start of his Wizards could be the cause for all this. Last year DC-based franchise got eliminated in the first round, the year before that in the semifinals of the Eastern Conference. This season was projected to be their finest so far, but instead, the team collapsed right after starting the campaign.
They have made many adjustments in order to please Wall. Marcin Gortat had to leave because he didn’t get along well with the point guard. Meanwhile, Dwight Howard arrived to replace him and add some rim protection to this crew. Now, he is injured. Superman will be out at least two months. That is also a huge setback for their ambitions.
The latest issue came up when allegedly Wizards’ board decided to put all the players, including Wall in the trade block. That certainly added some tension on the already pressured player.
After tonight’s game against the Nets at home, Washington has four straight contests on the road, versus Knicks, Hawks, Cavaliers and Pacers. Except for Indiana, all these teams could be defeated, which would present a huge boost for the shaken Wizards.
It would also take off some pressure from Wall.
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
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