John Wall has spent three full seasons in the NBA with the Washington Wizards. The former No. 1 overall pick was supposed to be a savior for the franchise, but he has yet to appear in a playoff game. Wall is aiming to change that this season.
The Wizards proved that they still have faith in their young point guard by signing him to a five-year, $80 million contract extension last season. In return, Wall is looking to break a trend of five straight seasons with a losing record. In order to keep his eyes on the prize, he is planning to write a message on his shoes.
“You will see it on all my shoes,” Wall recently told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck. “Every game pair is going to have ‘playoffs’ on it. That’s my main determination.”
[Related: Video: John Wall cries after getting contract extension]
Health will obviously be a major factor. Wall appeared in 69 games in his first NBA season, 66 in his second and only 49 last season. Given the way his knees feel and his supporting cast, he feels he “should be in the playoffs” at the end of the 2013-2014 season. And he will use the doubters and critics as motivation.
“I got snappings of all type of rankings,” Wall said. “I like it.”
When Wall came out of Kentucky, the hype was through the roof. Now, most “experts” would not rank him anywhere near the top-10 point guards in the league. At age 23, he has plenty of time to change all that. But before he can, he’ll have to accomplish the goal that’s written on his sneakers.
