When the best players in Washington Wizards history is brought up, most fans tend to immediately think of John Wall.
Wall was the heartbeat for the Wizards franchise for years not only because of the way he embraced the city, but for the way he carried himself on the court during his time in the DMV.
The former No. 1 overall pick proved to be one of the best point guards in the entire league during his time with the Wizards and in turn, he took the team to heights that even the fanbase didn't expect.
Falling just short of the Eastern Conference Finals with Wall leading the way alongside his running mate and fellow Wizards' legend Bradley Beal, it was clear that the days with the dynamic bacjcourt duo of Wall and Beal were the best times that the fanbase can look back on.
However, that backcourt pairing being split up is also the day that fans would like to forget, especially when they were forced to watch the player who embodied being a Wizard embrace a new city, team and fanbase after being traded to the Houston Rockets in 2020.
The Wizards' fanbase isn't the only one whow as hurt in the deal though.
In fact, Wall may have been hurt more than the fanbase and not only because of the trade itself, but because of the fact he didn't get the opportunity to represent the city in front of the fanbase one final time.
John Wall opens up on Wizards departure
In a recent interview on the Pivot Podcast, John Wall opened up about his trade from the Wizards.
"I'm like damn, this is a city where I want to play for one team, win a title, win a championship here," Wall said. "D.C. is all I've known since a kid, to be raised here"
Wall hoped to retire as a Wizard and not getting the chance to do that impacted him majorly.
Despite that, the trade itself isn't what hurt him the most, but instead it's the fact that he never got the chance to return from injury and put on the team's threads for one final time.
"At least let me get one year back here and then trade me if you want," Wall said in the interview. "Let me get the moment to play in front of these fans one more time in a Wizards jersey.. that's one thing I wish I had the opportunity to do but it didn't happen."
Instead of getting the opportunity to suit up in front of the fanbase that supported him since his rookie season after returning from injury, Wall was forced to restart fresh in Houston.
Obviously, Wall's NBA career was officially derailed by injuries that essentially ended his time in the DMV.
Nonetheless, looking back, it's hard to hear about how the Kentucky product's time in Washington came to an end and not consider it the worst part about his career turn.