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PLAYOFFS
NBA Playoffs

John Wall became a student to make the Wizards better

Jeff Zillgitt
USA TODAY Sports
John Wall is averaging 17.4 points and 12.6 assists through five playoff games — all Wizards wins.

John Wall looked left, across the court to Washington Wizards teammate Bradley Beal standing at the three-point line. His subtle ball fake to Beal froze the defense, and he threw the pass to a cutting Marcin Gortat at the basket for an easy layup.

It was just one of several beautiful assists — some simple, some difficult — that Wall has made in the playoffs.

It was a perfect example of what players mean when they say the game has slowed down for them. Using instincts and knowledge, they process what they're seeing and what they want to do with much more clarity and execute it.

Wall's court vision, passing, pace, dissection of the defense and control of the game has been the main act for the Wizards as they took Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday in their Eastern Conference semifinal series and swept the Toronto Raptors in the first round.

"John has put his superstar cap on," Wizards forward Paul Pierce said. "I always say this is where the stars of the NBA become superstars — in the playoffs. This is where they're born, and that's what you're seeing with John Wall right now."

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In five playoff games, Wall is averaging 17.4 points and 12.6 assists and has recorded a double-double in points and assists in Washington's past four playoff games, including 18 and 13 in the Wizards' series-opening victory over the Hawks.

Wall said he knows he can "dictate the game by not scoring (and) by doing other things."

Wall was phenomenal against the Raptors, taking another major step in his development as one on the top point guards in the league, and Raptors coach Dwane Casey marveled at Wall's attack.

"The one thing John is doing a much better job of is changing speeds, but he's relentless. His speed coming at you after makes and misses was relentless," Casey said. "It didn't seem like he was ever going to get tired. His passing has improved so much and he's making the right decisions out of the double team and out of the traps and drawing in the paint and finding (players). He's grown from that standpoint."

Wall's speed and athleticism are obvious, and it has overshadowed other aspects of his development. He hasn't received the credit he deserves for his work ethic and game study.

In Wall's first few seasons, he went from one end of the court to the other in flash. Not many defenders could keep up with him, but it sometimes resulted in sloppy, turnover-laden play. Wall got by with that one-speed approach in college and high school. It's not as successful in the NBA if that's the only speed you have.

Wall began working with renowned basketball trainer Rob McClanaghan, who has worked with guys like Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose and Kevin Love. Wall made a year-around commitment to his game, and McClanaghan said he first started working on Wall's change of pace.

"It took us a year or two," McClanaghan said. "I was straight up with John. I can't have him come to L.A. for four weeks and say, 'See you next summer.' It has to be all year.

"The phrase I use with him is, 'Slow is quick.' Now that he's playing slower, he sees the floor better. When you're going at the high speed, you're not looking around for the corner three or the guy down on the block. He's much more in control because he's much more patient."

As Wall said, "I'm not just going 100 mph like I did my first three years."

In his third NBA season two years ago, Wall gained a greater appreciation of video. He began studying how super-fast guards such as Rose and Westbrook changed speeds and pace. But he also watched video of Chris Paul, Tony Parker and Sam Cassell, learning how those players controlled the offense and made good decisions. McClanaghan just sent Wall video breaking down Wall's play and will meet with Wall between Games 2 and 3.

"He loves the film and he loves the extra work," McClanaghan said. "All the work he has put in has made him a much more confident player."

McClanaghan said Wall is more prepared too, comparing it to a student who starts studying for a test a week in advance or the student who starts studying on the bus the morning of the test. Wall now has a better grasp of the answers.

His pick-and-roll with Gortat has been fantastic, with Wall delivering a variety of clever passes to Gortat for layups or dunks.

"He understands that if he runs the floor and sets good screens for me, it's also going to get me open and he's going to get himself open," Wall said. "A lot of times he's getting a lot late passes, and he's doing a great job of finishing."

Of Washington's 123 assists in five playoff games, Wall has 63 — 22 of them to Gortat, who is shooting 79.3% on passes from Wall, and 10 each to Beal and Pierce.

In the playoffs, Wall also leads all players in free throw assists (a pass leading to at least one made free throw), points created by assists (30.8) and is third in secondary, or hockey, assists at 2.4 per game. He's also first in assist opportunities per game (23.6), which is when a player attempts a shot after a pass from Wall. It indicates Wall is finding the open man.

"I'm a pass-first type point guard," Wall said. "When any of my teammates are doing well, I'm happy for those guys."

Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.

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