They say an honorable captain stays with his ship when it’s sinking. We’ve seen that play out in the movie the Titanic. When everyone else was scattering around, the captain held onto the steers and went down with the ship. A similar scenario is playing out for the Wizards. Captain John Wall should not stay with this ship and abandon it immediately.
No Heart, No Effort:
This Wizards team on paper should be one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. It’s not a team with inexperienced rookies or led by an inexperienced coach. Granted, Scott Brooks must learn his players and the players must buy into his system. However, that’s not the issue the Wizards are having. They lack heart. That’s something that isn’t coached. Effort and heart are things that are instilled in a person from the beginning of time. Wall mentioned that last night about working hard. He said that everyone has a job and they have to work hard at it every day. Think about any career or any goal you may set for yourself, normally you had to work hard for it. If you want to become a great journalist you must study hard. You must read and write everyday and perfect your craft. You will not get that dream job or accomplish that goal you want by sitting around waiting for it to appear. If you equate that to basketball the same will be said. Under no circumstances should the Orlando Magic or Philadelphia 76ers beat a team with John Wall and Bradley Beal on it.
Back to the Drawing Board:
At this point, a quarter of the season is gone. You could try to move a few pieces, but realistically what pieces could you move? Beal just signed a max deal prior to this season. The younger core such as Trey Burke and Kelly Oubre have not really shown their worth just yet. Both Oubre and Burke will prosper in their own right, but moving them isn’t going to solve anything. The problem is you need another piece that’ll help out on both the defensive and offensive end. You need a player that’ll benefit off of having two guards like Beal and Wall whom can get 20-30 points on their own. So, you need really another threat on the court. Now, the Wizards could go into tank mode and try to grab a young player in the draft, but Wall shouldn’t have to go through a rebuilding phase to finally be on a team that’s competitive.
Reevaluating the future:
Wall should look in the mirror and realize he gave it his all. He isn’t getting any younger and should ask for a trade. That would allow the Wizards to receive some younger talent that Brooks can develop and that’ll allow Wall to join a team that’ll be in position to compete. Wall has done everything a player could possibly do with the rosters he’s been on with Washington. He’s a pillar of the community and has always played his hardest. Even on a back-to-back game last night, Wall scored his new career high of 52 points in a losing effort to the Magic. This same Wizards team had to come from behind and beat the Brooklyn Nets. Wall should not have to be subjected to this.
Asking for a trade would not taint the legacy that Wall has put in place. He’s done his part. It’s the Wizards who are suppose to surround him with great cast members to be competitive. You look around the league and you’ll see this being done. The Bulls decided to part ways with Derrick Rose and brought in pieces to help Jimmy Butler. Prior to the last week or so, the bulls were prospering. Boston put themselves in position to compete and the same can be said about Toronto. Those teams made decisions for better or for worse to try to overcome the biggest threat, Cleveland. Though much older, Lebron James isn’t going anywhere. So teams must put in place a roster that can battle and beat Cleveland.
What other options does Wall have at this point? If they continue to lose this was just a wasted effort and more wear and tear on his body. He’s already been through a few surgeries and as mentioned he’s not getting any younger as this league is continually getting faster. This ship is sinking fast and Wall must think about himself first and find a better situation. If not, if this team continues going down this downward spiral, Wall career would end with not much to show for it but his own personal accolades. He wouldn’t be selfish nor should he be looked at as a coward for not rolling with the punches of a team that’s in transition. After (insert the number of years he’s played) years he’s been on the good and bad ends of this organization with these different rosters. It’s time for Wall to go out and become great.
"A journalist who doesn't value deeply an audience's loyalty should be in another line of work." --- Peter Jennings