Former Washington Wizards All-Star and No. 1 overall draft pick John Wall has officially retired from the NBA after 11 seasons, he announced Tuesday.
Wall, 34, last played in the NBA for the Los Angeles Clippers during the 2022-23 season. The five-time All-Star finishes his NBA career averaging 18.7 points, 8.9 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 34.9 minutes across 647 games played.
“I gave this game everything I had,” Wall said in a retirement video posted to social media. “From Raleigh to Kentucky to the league. Every jersey I’ve worn meant more than just wins and stats. It was about representing something bigger.
“Today, I’m stepping off the court, but not away from the game. Basketball will always be in my life. As new opportunities present themselves, I feel now is the time to walk confidently into my next chapter,” he added.
Wall, a collegiate superstar at the University of Kentucky, was drafted first overall by the Wizards in the 2010 NBA Draft. Known for his blazing speed up and down the court, Wall averaged 16.4 points, 8.3 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game as a rookie, finishing second in 2010-11 NBA Rookie of the Year voting to Clippers star Blake Griffin.
In nine seasons with the Wizards, Wall earned five consecutive All-Star selections from 2014-18, was named All-Defensive Second Team in 2014-15, All-NBA Third Team in 2016-17 and also finished seventh in MVP voting that season.
In 2017, Wall signed a four-year, $170 million contract extension with the Wizards. However, he ruptured his Achilles tendon in February 2019 during a fall at his home. He missed the remainder of that season and the entire 2019-20 NBA season.
In December 2020, the Wizards traded Wall and a first round pick to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Russell Westbrook. He averaged 20.6 points, 6.9 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game in 40 games in his lone season with the Rockets.
Wall sat out the 2021-22 season due to a dispute with the Rockets and was released by the team in June 2022. He signed with the Clippers the following month and played in 34 games for LA during the 2022-23 season, averaging 11.4 points and 5.2 assists per game.
“John Wall will always be remembered as one of the premier speed-and-flash guards of his era, a player whose high school mixtape is still etched in basketball lore,” Ethan Sands, Cleveland Cavaliers reporter for cleveland.com / The Plain Dealer said. “But that’s not ultimately how his career is defined. Injuries derailed much of what could have been, and his reluctance to accept a role outside of stardom shortened his time in the league. It’s a reminder to every player: talent isn’t always enough if you can’t adapt. His story is as much about brilliance as it is about the unforgiving realities of the NBA.”
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