Nov 23, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards point guard John Wall (2) smiles while talking to Wizards head coach Randy Wittman against the New York Knicks in the fourth quarter at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 98-89. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

We all wondered whether or not John Wall was going to take “the leap” this season, but the former first overall pick has done exactly that coming into his fourth year with the Washington Wizards. Injuries have plagued the Eastern Conference, and some of the top guards have unfortunately been sidelined for extended amounts of time. John Wall has undoubtedly become the best point guard in the conference with Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo out, making him the clear choice to start at the NBA All-Star game. Wall has been snubbed by ESPN in the past, but it seems like they’ve begun changing their opinion about him.

ESPN broke down their East All-Star picks in their 5-on-5 roundtable, and John Wall was unanimously chosen as the starting point guard. Here’s a snippet from the piece:

1) East backcourt All-Star starter: Kyrie Irving, John Wall, or who? Michael Pina, Red94: John Wall. Wall is second in the league in assists, is shooting it better than Irving this season from almost everywhere on the court and remains an absolute blur with the ball. He has been one of the three best point guards in the league this season, even if that designation comes with an injury-related asterisk.

-Check out the completed piece on ESPN

Wall hasn’t gotten the recognition he deserves since he entered the NBA, but injuries in the Eastern Conference have really opened the door for him to finally get noticed.

John Wall is averaging over 19 points and 9 assists per game, and he’s played at an elite level this entire season. Wall stated that his only goal coming into the season was to make the playoffs, but now that the Wizards are winning some games in the lowly conference, he’s getting some individual recognition for his accomplishments.

Even though John Wall is currently the best point guard in the Eastern Conference, the All-Star starters are selected by fans via vote. Kyrie Irving is probably the more popular player at this point, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Wall doesn’t make the starting lineup. Irving has had a down year thus far, and Wall has surprisingly shot better than him this season which is evidence of his constant improvement.

Not only is John Wall playing at an elite level at his position, one could argue that he’s been one of the best players in the entire league this season. The Wizards haven’t had an All-Star player represent their team since the Gilbert Arenas-Caron Butler-Antawn Jamison Era, so this is definitely an exciting time.