Jan 13, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) celebrates after a score against the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Washington Wizards Fans Need To Appreciate John Wall More

The Washington Wizards have put all of their chips into hopefully landing a superstar this summer — Kevin Durant — and things haven’t gone according to plan.

Instead of building a competent, well-organized roster, Ernie Grunfeld and the rest of his staff signed a bunch of players who are past their primes and cannot stay healthy to one-year deals.

What has resulted is exactly the season you’ve gotten this year– a sub-par, underperforming, oft-injured team sitting outside of the playoff picture.

When you truly think about it, the Wizards are kind of a mess.

Their general manager, Grunfeld, has been around the league for eons and he’s only drafted two All-Stars: Michael Redd and John Wall. The latter was an obvious pick that Ray Charles could’ve gotten correct.

But throughout the course of this unfortunate 2015-2016 NBA season, we’ve gotten to see Wall play some of the best basketball of his career. Even though I’ve acknowledged that his best individual season could potentially be wasted, I’ve yet to actually sit down and appreciate it.

I’ve mentioned this previously in other writings, but I have a difficult time appreciating the moment as it’s currently happening. It applies to my actual life, but it definitely also applies to my NBA fandom too.

I didn’t appreciate Gilbert Arenas enough when he was in the nation’s capital. Did I love watching him play and did I proudly rock my Gilbert jersey in public? Sure. But I failed to recognize how truly great he was until he was gone — until it was too late to say goodbye.

The same thing happened with Kobe, too.

I watch Kobe nowadays (along with Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett and others) and think to myself, “damn, I wish I appreciated him more when he was one of the best players on the planet.”

But that time is over. Kobe is washed up, and while he’ll occasionally show flashes of his former self — just like he did against Washington earlier this season — those are merely flashes.

Right now, the Washington Wizards have one of the best players in the world on their roster and he’s rarely appreciated. In fact, he’s often booed on his home court while shooting free throws if the opposing team has a large fan base. It’s sickening, really.

Not only has Wall been a perennial All-Star, but he actually cares about the team and the organization. The same cannot be said for Gilbert, who basically self-destructed and ended his career before injuries took over.

And for some reason, we still don’t appreciate John Wall for being who he is: a true superstar who continuously gives it his all for the team.

On Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors, we got to see John Wall do exactly what he does best.

He suited up against the Warriors knowing that the Wizards had virtually no chance to win, but he didn’t check out. Instead, he played one of the best games of his career, dropping 41 points to go along side 10 assists.

I’m unsure if there’s another player in the league who means more to his team individually than Wall. Without Wall, the Washington Wizards would have trouble cracking double-digit wins.

Basically everyone on their roster is solely dependent on his play. If Wall can’t get his teammates open looks, the Wizards are doomed. The same applies to his big men, who are constantly spoon fed by their superstar guard.

John Wall is in his sixth season and the Wizards should be a lot better than they are. Simply put, he doesn’t deserve to be in a losing situation. Now, I’m not saying that Wall should pack up his bags and leave D.C., but I’m just pointing out that he’s in an unfortunate circumstance.

Wall might be a member of the Washington Wizards for the rest of his career, but there’s a solid chance that he isn’t going to be. Look around the league — how many players have stuck around for their entire careers? Kobe, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan and Dwyane Wade are the only ones who come to mind.

The next time you watch John Wall deliver an impossible pass or finish a dunk in transition, please take a moment to truly appreciate it — because once he’s gone, he’s gone. After all, your current point guard is one of the greatest the organization has ever seen.