If The Washington Wizards Chose Evan Turner Over John Wall In 2010
By Osman Baig
What would’ve happened if the Washington Wizards didn’t take John Wall in the 2010 NBA Draft…
How did we get here? To know how we got here you have to go back to the beginning.
Rewind to June 24th, 2010….NBA Commissioner David Stern goes to the podium.
With the first pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards select…..Evan Turner
What happened?! What happened to something which seemed like a no brainer draft choice? It was a given; John Wall was supposed to be the number one pick of the draft without question. I don’t understand!
I spent the month since the Wizards won the lottery learning how to do the Dougie and for what; to Dougie for Evan Turner?
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Washington has two picks left in the first round? It doesn’t even matter anymore. They just passed on John Wall. I can’t accept or comprehend this so I decided to go to sleep.
By the time I woke up I felt hollow inside, but as Wizards fans are genetically coded to do, I began the process of reconciling the selection and started to come to peace with it.
I searched the internet with a fine-tooth comb, looking for any draft day analysis which justified the selection and used that as the basis to defend the pick to my friends.
I also saw that the Wizards also managed to draft Trevor Booker in the latter half of the first round, who was a pre-draft favorite of mine.
The sun was coming out. We got the NCAA Men’s Basketball Player of the Year! With his size and ball handling skills, he was a good fit next to a returning Gilbert Arenas.
The time for Evan’s introductory press conference had arrived. The buzz had diminished a bit after the Wizards passed on John Wall, but I was fired up at this point and listening intently.
Ernie Grunfeld: We are glad to introduce Evan Turner as our number one overall draft selection. We feel as though Evan Turner is a good fit with our returning nucleus. As you all are aware of, we were at the top of the Eastern Conference just two seasons ago and we feel as though the backcourt fit of Evan Turner and Gilbert Arenas can get us back to contention with the development of our young crop of big men.
Flip Saunders: Evan Turner’s midrange ability is a perfect fit into the offense we’ll be playing. As I proved with Kevin Garnett, I can develop young talent.
Training camp was just around the corner and I couldn’t wait to see this new Wizards team hit the floor. Look at the young players on this roster!
Evan Turner
Andray Blatche
JaVale McGee
Al Thornton
Nick Young
Wooo! Times are about to get good! I decide to get a partial ticket plan because I was definitely going to need playoff priority.
The season started off slow with a 0-2 start on the road, but the home opener was on tap. John Wall and the Philadelphia 76ers were coming to the Verizon Center. This was it; Evan Turner’s chance to prove to the basketball world that the Washington Wizards made the right decision in selecting him over John Wall.
The moment was here, Evan Turner was being introduced. The less than capacity crowd game him a warm welcome as he quickly rose from the bench and introduced himself to the Wizards faithful. The game was played at a fast and furious pace and in the end; Evan Turner and the Wizards prevailed.
The arrival of a new Big 3 was announced; Evan Turner, Andray Blatche, and JaVale McGee were the future.
Then the Washington Wizards lost, and lost, and lost some more. Gilbert Arenas eventually forced his way out of town. He was soon followed by Kirk Hinrich.
All hope was not lost, however.
With a poor season came a strong draft position. Evan Turner also had to be given the benefit of the doubt. Too much was asked of him too soon, and he needed better talent and teammates around him to help maximize his potential. Ernie Grunfeld took note.
He scoured the world looking for the right compliment to Evan Turner. His journey took him across the Atlantic and to the door of one Jan Vesely. The Evan Turner/Jan Vesely era had arrived. The European Blake Griffin with the 2010 Big Ten and NCAA Player of the Year? Sign me up!
Still, the losses continued to mount. The true gut punch came with the emergence of John Wall. Wall was putting his imprint on the Philadelphia 76ers and showing star potential in a breakout season.
That’s when the unthinkable happened. The max contract happened. What followed was even worse. Inflation hit hard, the market plummeted, and gas prices sky-rocketed. If there was a bubble, it burst. The DMV was hit so hard that we were quarantined off from the rest of the country.
Fast forward to the future and here we are.
All hope is lost. The streets are abandoned. Food is scarce. These things called Sentinels are circling Verizon Center (I don’t know if they’re good or bad yet).
Belief has been replaced with apathy. #dcRISING? What’s that? #KD2DC? LOL, please don’t make me spit up the food I can find.
Well, at least it’s the holidays and I can sit back and watch some Christmas Day basketball. I turn on the television and the first game is John Wall and the Philadelphia 76ers visiting Madison Square Garden to play the Knicks.
I couldn’t watch. I decide to take a nap and think, what might have been….