John Wall Lights Up Atlanta

It was a very good night for point guards. From ESPN’s John Hollinger: “Sure, Atlanta won the game, 99-95. But absolutely nobody left the gym tonight talking about the Hawks. Instead it was Washington rookie John Wall who drew raves from all sides. In just his second pro game, the Wizards’ point guard flew to the hoop at will while scoring 28 points and adding nine assists in a valiant losing effort. While the Wizards lost, Wall’s brilliance kept Washington in the game for much longer than anyone expected. He was at his best when it mattered most. Wall scored a dozen straight points to tie the game at 80 at the end of the third quarter, but the Wizards fell behind by nine points again when Wall went to the bench for a three-and-a-half minute rest to begin the fourth. Not for long. Wall checked back in and rallied the Wizards almost immediately, draining two jumpers and then making two brilliant hit-ahead passes for layups to tie the game at 84 with 4:44 left. The Hawks then scored on five straight trips to put the game away, but only after Wall hit two 3s and narrowly missed a third with 38.9 seconds left that would have cut the lead to two. Let’s just say the locals were impressed. ‘That is one fast human being,’ said Hawks coach Larry Drew, who could only compare him speed-wise to former Utah Jazz speedster Rickey Green. ‘But,’ he added, ‘John may be faster. And he’s powerful, he’s got size.'”