[stag_dropcap font_size=”50px” style=”squared”]J[/stag_dropcap]ohn Wall has had a unique path to stardom, which is a weird thing to say about a No. 1 recruit turned No. 1 draft pick. In that sense, Wall’s ascension to the top of NBA ranks is traditional. But past the gradual and expected progression of your standard lottery pick, Wall has enjoyed a more advanced transformation over the past few seasons.

Wall’s growth has been innovative. He’s expanded areas of his game previously thought to be immune to refinement; this hasn’t been about an improving jumpshot or a better defensive effort, it’s about evolving intuition. Coming into the league, Wall was more of an athletic specimen than a polished product, relying mostly on his lightning quick first step and aerial skills to get by. But year-by-year, Wall has grown, becoming more intimate with the intricacies of the game.

Wall’s education has mostly focused on the way that he sees the court, and in turn how he can best dictate the flow of the game. The way that Wall perceives the game has improved substantially, giving himself a much better grasp on the minute details that can turn a prospective star into a graduate student. When you watch Wall, you can tell that he’s entirely familiar with the reactions that his each and every movement will provoke; if he turns the corner on a high screen-and-roll, he knows when, where and how to pick apart the back layer of the defense.

Due to some iffy tactics, Randy Wittman often squanders chances to extract the most out of his players, but Wall does his best to amplify the talents of those around him. Without Wall the Wizards are bereft of a engine, like a car without gasoline. Washington runs on Wall’s unique brand of perseverance; he powers an otherwise punchless offense by breaking down defenses and creating crevasses for his teammates to attack.

Wall has matured from an athlete to an architect, one capable of arousing an otherwise precarious offense, and he’s become one of the floor generals in the league. During the regular season, Wall created 23.1 points per game with his assists, second only to Chris Paul (23.8), and he was third in assist opportunities per game. Wall has climbed to the No. 1 spot in the postseason rankings, creating 28.2 points per game on his assists, eight points more than James Harden (19.7), who is No. 2 on the list.

The Wizards desperately miss Wall’s creativity when he is off the floor. According to NBA.com/Stats, Washington is scoring 109.4 points per 100 possessions with Wall on the floor this postseason, an elite figure that drops to 99.1 points per 100 possessions when he sits. The same trend was prevalent in the regular season as Washington scored just 97.6 points per 100 possessions when Wall was on the bench, an offensive rating that put them in the same neighborhood as the Charlotte Hornets.

Wall has become more resourceful and clever, mastering the trickiest details of the game on the fly. Wall’s game isn’t quite as artful as Stephen Curry’s or as precise as Chris Paul’s, but there is an elegance to his punctuality and occasional lack of restraint. Few players have the same athletic gear as Wall, and now that he has harnessed that ability, spruced up his intellect, and adopted a more diplomatic approach, we are beginning to see a more well-rounded product capable of taking the league by storm.

One thing that hasn’t changed much for Wall since the day he was drafted is his role with the Wizards. Even for a one-and-done kid, Wall was charismatic enough to be the face of the franchise the second he put on the uniform. The problem was that he inherited the keys to a car filled with knuckleheads and basketball toxins. Imagine having to manage a team with JaVale McGee, Andray Blatche, Nick Young and Jordan Crawford before your 21st birthday. Yeah, not so great.

Now that he has accomplished and accommodating weapons around him, Wall is starting to blossom. He pushes the tempo, enhancing the senses and sensibilities of his teammates and generates buzz with his fearlessness. Defensively, his long limbs, quick feet and supercharged will spearhead a gritty Wizards defense. Wall leads with his actions, his energy and his words, and he’s become more comfortable doing so with age. It’s encouraging to see that even as Washington has brought in more veteran and savvy players to surround him, Wall still has a voice that echos and a game that commands the ultimate respect from his teammates.

Wall still has some rough edges – his lack of a 3-point shot in the “MVP of the league takes eight 3’s a game” era is troubling – but there is a determination within his game that masks his flaws. Wall hasn’t quite reached maestro status, but he’s developed a more sophisticated and deft feel for the game that places him amongst the games elite point guards. And during a time when more great point guards are around then ever before, that’s not a bad place for a 24-year-old to use as another jumping off point.