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Washington Wizards: Wall named Eastern Conference Player of the Week

By Christopher Church

Dec 28, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) shoots as Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) defends during the second half at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 111 - 105. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 28, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) shoots as Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) defends during the second half at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 111 - 105. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /
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Washington Wizards star point guard John Wall named NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week along with Houston Rockets’ James Harden winning the Western Conference Player of the week.

The Washington Wizards road matchup tonight against the Houston Rockets will feature both the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week in John Wall and James Harden. Both players earned the weekly award for their spectacular play during the timeframe of Monday, Dec. 26 through Sunday, Jan. 1.

The three-time NBA All-Star John Wall led the Washington Wizards to three straight wins, helping the team reach the .500 mark after a disastrous November. Not only did Wall and the Wizards have a successful last week of December, but also finished the month with a record of 10-5, third best December record in the Eastern Conference.

Last week, Wall averaged 24.3 points, 13 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals. Wall was an assist shy of earning his first triple-double of the season in last Wednesday’s win over the Indiana Pacers scoring 36 points with 11 rebounds and nine assists in the 111-105 win. Two days earlier, Wall recorded his 18th double-double with 18 points and 16 assists in a win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Wall concluded the month with yet another double-double, something he achieved in all three games last week, with 19 points and 14 assists.

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The Wizards marched back into the playoff picture and currently sit sixth in the Eastern Conference thanks to Wall’s inspiring play. Wall averaged 24.5 points, 10.7 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.7 steals in the month of December. The month also included the 26-year-old scoring a career-high 52 points in a humiliating home loss to the Orlando Magic.

Wall is worthy of his fourth All-Star selection this February, but with their lack of national TV appearances, Wall’s national exposure is limited and may hurt his All-Star chances.

Fortunately, the NBA altered the All-Star selection process by having the league’s current players and a panel of basketball media accounting for 25 percent each of the vote. After fans valued for 100 percent of the team’s starting lineup, they will now just account for 50 percent of the voting. Coaches remain the voters for the NBA All-Star reserves.

Next: Terps blow chance to return to the Top 25

The Washington Wizards start 2017 with a two-game road trip featuring games versus the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks before ending the week with a home game against the flashy Minnesota Timberwolves.

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