With Paul Pierce choosing to leave the Wizards in favor of joining the Los Angeles Clippers, John Wall is going to have to be the guy to take on the leadership role The Truth had last season. Entering his sixth season, he is now an NBA veteran who can be looked up to by younger players as he guides them to greatness.
Wall is no longer going to have Pierce there to knock down clutch shots in the playoffs to bail Washington out, so he is going to have to be the one coming up and making big plays down the stretch. The team has done a lot throughout the offseason to put the right pieces in place, but now the pressure is on to compete and exceed expectations.
Following From Washington Post.
“It’s all on me now. I feel like it is. Going into my sixth year and having three great veterans in Trevor Ariza and Al Harrington and definitely Paul Pierce, those guys taught me to be a leader the best way you can be.
And now I have to go in there from Day 1 and try to do what I got to do and do what those guys did in the past and lead my team.
When I came in young I didn’t want to do it because everybody always was like, ‘Well, he’s the No. 1 pick. He thinks he’s all that.’ That’s how I felt.
And just getting the respect. When I get the respect from a Hall of Famer in Paul Pierce, who tells me, ‘You got to be our leader, you’re our best player. We want you to do these types of things.’ Now I feel like I can say anything to anybody in a respectful way.
Not trying to disrespect anybody and do it in a professional manner to make sure that our team is going to be the best it can be.”
Even though Pierce only spent once season as a Wizard, his presence is going to be felt for a long time to come. Whether it was turning Otto Porter into the player he is today or showing Wall he can too be a leader, his time in DC will never be forgotten.
