4 Reasons the Washington Wizards need to play John Wall this season

Their Future Depends On It

A lot of what the Wizards will do this offseason and what they’ll prioritize moving forward will be done under the impression that John Wall will come back and at least be decent. But given the nature of his injury and how we’ve seen guys return – or not return – from similar stints on the sideline, it shouldn’t be such a foregone conclusion that a Wall return will definitely and immediately raise this team to playoff contention.

Shouldn’t we have some inclination that that’s the case, or at least that he’s heading in the right direction?

The Wizards will enter this offseason with Bradley Beal, John Wall, and Rui Hachimura as obvious parts of the future plan. Hopefully, they can hold onto Davis Beratns. But beyond that, it doesn’t seem like the team is completely committed to anyone. And with a stockpile of guys 23 years old or younger, they have some attractive assets they could move this summer if they so pleased.

However, with so much of this team’s future riding on how Wall comes back and what type of player he is post-injury, the Wizards would benefit by seeing how Wall is playing with those possible new teammates before heading into this offseason.

Will Ish Smith still be the best backup option? Or could Shabazz Napier do the job at a cheaper price, making the final year of Smtih’s deal dispensible? Does he pair better with Bryant or Wagner? And does how Wall looks in his return affect their draft strategy at all?

Now ten meaningless games of a rusty John Wall probably won’t give us all the answers for a full evaluation of how he fits with these new faces heading into free agency, but it could provide some much-needed insight.