Point guard John Wall is no stranger to serving as a leader of the Washington Wizards. His impact over the last few years has only solidified the franchises’ belief that he would develop into the player it imagined when it spent its No. 1 pick on him in 2010. He proved it again with his performance Friday night against the Philadelphia 76ers when he achieved his fourth career triple-double and led his team to a 106–94 victory at the Verizon Center.
The Wizards set the tone from the start in their highest scoring first quarter all season with 38 points. They did an excellent job defensively from the whistle and held the Sixers to just 18 points in the first quarter.
The home team continued its consistent play, which included aggressive offense as well as very purposeful and intense defensive rebounding. The Wizards led going into halftime 60–47.
Philadelphia started to bring the heat in the third quarter and Washington certainly felt it. What was once a large deficit slowly began to diminish as Philly inched closer and closer to tying the game. At the middle of the he third quarter Washington had a strong lead at 76-51, but the Sixers battled back to bring the game within 10 points.
Wall shut down 76ers comeback attempt with an arena-shaking assist play to shooting guard Bradley Beal for the alley-oop. The NBA All-Star then went on to score another five points after that, reclaiming a sizable lead for Washington.
Five Wizards reached double figures. Beal led the way with 22 points, while center Marcin Gortat followed with 21. Wall recorded 18, forward Jared Dudley had 13 points and guard Gary Neal registered 11.
Beal made his first start since Dec. 9 after missing 16 games due to a stress fracture in his right leg and is playing on time limitation restrictions until he gets back to full strength. While he has been back for several games, this was his first time returning to the starting lineup.
Wall’s fourth career triple-double came in the form of his 18 points, 13 rebounds (all defensive rebounds) and 10 assists.
Triple-doubles are not easy to come by but Wizards Head Coach Randy Wittman commented that they were not that important to him unless they bring a win.
“The 13 rebounds I really like just from a standpoint of getting back in there and helping,” he also said after the game. “We end up winning the rebounding game tonight because of that.”
John Wall certainly made a huge impact in all facets of this game. It is that kind of energy and focus that can drive the Wizards toward the playoffs and propel them into the post-season.