The Washington Wizards kicked off the NBA Playoffs with an overtime victory over the Toronto Raptors. That’s the good. The bad is, John Wall had and up-and-down performance.

John Wall finished the game with 10 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds on 27.8% shooting from the field.

He did not attempt a single free throw and was 0-2 on his 3-point field goal attempts.

This is how Wall fared in his previous seven games against the Toronto Raptors, dating back to last season:

Points Per Game – 22.6

Assists Per Game – 7.9

Rebounds Per Game- 3.4

Field Goal Percentage – 48.7%

His struggles were a little surprising, because in addition to his prior success versus them, the Raptors are a bottom ten team in the NBA in terms of defensive efficiency and gave up nearly 101 points per game in the regular season.

This is not the Chicago Bulls or Indiana Pacers he’s facing anymore.

But, should we really care?

John Wall has a 7-5 career postseason record on his resume, including an astonishing 6-1 road mark.

Isn’t that all that matters? Wall only had one turnover in Game-1 and routinely created open looks for teammates who were having an off night shooting

I think the answer lies somewhere in the middle.

On the road, it has somehow worked and you frankly can’t argue that with their 6-1 record dating back to last season. I think it’s fair to say we’d all take that versus a Wizards loss and a fantastic performance from John Wall.

It’s possible that the balanced attack they play with on the road has kept the team from being dependent on one player and that has helped lead to their road success.

That being said, it’s hard to say it’s not concerning that he did not attempt one free throw despite taking 18 shots from the field.

Even though John Wall’s shooting percentage wasn’t great versus Chicago last season, he helped make up for it by getting to the free throw line 9.2 times per game.

That clip dropped significantly in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals versus Indiana to 3.7 attempts per game. That’s a trend worth watching as the Wizards get deeper into this series.

A larger issue in play may be John Wall’s performance on the road versus home. Were his struggles in Toronto based on it being the postseason or the general dip in his production when he plays away from Verizon Center?

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What this tells me is playoffs or no playoffs; you get a different John Wall when he’s not playing in the friendly confines of the Verizon Center.

The John Wall that plays at Verizon Center is a bona fide All-Star. The Wizards, as proven by their 6-1 road playoff record, don’t need Wall to turn into a 25 PPG scorer, but they need a decisive, aggressive player.

As we’ve seen, when John Wall is aggressive, he not only enhances his own offense, he creates easier opportunities for his teammates.

The Washington Wizards may be able to survive a series like they did last year before being eliminated versus Indiana, but for them to reach their ultimate potential, the only All-Star player on the Wizards needs to eventually play up to that level, home and away.