The Unassailable Case for Why John Wall's No. 2 Should be Retired by the Wizards

Since the Bullets changed their name to the Wizards in 1997 no player has had their number retired, John Wall deserves to buck that trend.

Few players in Washington Wizards history have captured the heart of the city, the admiration of fans, and the respect of peers quite like John Wall. This week John Wall announced his retirement from the NBA after an 11-year playing career and that his next step in his basketball journey would be joining Amazon prime as an analyst in their inaugural season of NBA coverage. The transition to basketball analyst should be a seamless one because anyone who knows anything about Wall, knows how much of a student of the game he is and while he certainly made a name for himself with his blazing speed and athletic prowess, he was one of the most underrated basketball minds of the 2010’s.

That entire decade Wall was a member of the Wizards and he not only served as the face of the franchise but also as the beating heart of basketball in the nation’s capital. As the Wizards look to define their history and honor those who shaped it, there is no question that Wall’s No. 2 jersey should hang in the rafters of Capital One Arena. The case for this honor extends beyond the numbers on a stat sheet and lies in the cultural identity he forged for the team, and the profound impact he left on the district as a community.

When the Wizards selected Wall with the No.1 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the franchise was at one of its lowest points as the Gilbert Arenas era was waning and provided much turmoil on and off the court. Wall’s arrival marked the dawn of a new chapter. His dazzling speed, elite playmaking, and fierce competitiveness helped transform the Wizards from an afterthought into true playoff contenders. Over his decade in Washington Wall solidified himself as one of the Bullet/Wizard greats by etching his name in the record books as the franchise’s all-time leader in assists and steals, while also being ranked top five in points. As a 5-time All-Star and one time All-NBA and All-Defensive selection, the height of Wall’s tenure with the Wizards defined the franchise during the 2010’s.

To talk about why John Wall should have his jersey retired in D.C., it probably would be best to look at why teams retire jerseys in the first place and what exactly is the “standard” for a player to be immortalized forever by a franchise. There is no fixed league criteria for who should have their respective numbers retired but of the 184 total player jerseys that are retired across the entirety of the NBA there are a few common themes such as long impactful tenures, cultural and leadership contributions, legacy or emotional significance. Retiring a jersey is more than just taking a number out of circulation, it’s a symbolic way of preserving a person's legacy within the franchise and you cannot tell the story of the Washington Wizards without John Wall, point blank period.

Since the Wizards changed their name from the Bullets to the Wizards in 1997, no player who has donned the jersey has had more success or impact on the city as John Wall. No player has also had the honor of having their number retired either. The last player to have their number retired by the franchise was Phil Chenier in 2018 and he was a Washington Bullet.

While the Wizards did not win a championship or even make the NBA Finals, they were perennial payoff contenders from 2014 to 2018 with 20 playoff victories over that span with their most successful season being the 2017 campaign in which they took the Boston Celtics to a 7-game series and were one win away from the conference finals.

How the Wizards got to that Game 7 against the Celtics is the career defining moment for Wall as he hit the game winning 3-point shot to beat the Wizards in Game 6 as he jumped on the scorer’s table to emphatically let the D.C. crowd know that “this is my city.”

Jersey retirement isn’t just about winning rings because if that were the case, half the teams in the league would not have a single number retired. It’s about identity. It’s about who helped shape the history of your franchise and if Michael Winger and Will Dawkins truly want to move the Wizards organization forward then it is critical for them to properly honor the people who truly shaped the team to where it is now.

Other franchises get this, which is why the Sacramento Kings retired Chris Webber and Peja Stojakavic, Portland honored Brandon Roy, and the “Grit and Grind” Memphis Grizzlies retired both Zach Randolph and Tony Allen. Of those names listed only Chris Webber is a Hall of Fame player and while Wall may fall short of the most prestigious honor, he also makes a strong case even there.

Basketball Reference has a model in which the site predicts Hall of Fame probability of players and John Wall has a 32% chance of making it to the Pro Basketball Hall of Fame according to this model which ranks 141st among every player who has ever put on an NBA jersey and even in front of a few people who have already been inducted into the Hall. Wall’s impact on the court showed that not only was he elite in the era in which he played but his numbers are very much comparable to some of the All-Time greats to ever play the game. Wall is one of only five players in NBA history with career averages of at least 18 points, 9 assists, and 1.5 steals with the others beig Magic Johnson, Chris Paul, Tim Hardaway Sr., and Isiah Thomas. To put it mildly, Wall wasn’t just a “good” point guard, he produced numbers that put him the company of some of the best floor generals to ever do it.

Wizards fans have started petitions in the past to retire Wall’s jersey because people don’t just remember the numbers or the accolades, they remember the feeling. The feeling of Wall flying down the court faster than anyone, the feeling of throwing no-look dimes to Gortat and Nene. The feeling of him willing the Wizards to relevancy during the 2010’s when everyone still believed the franchise to be a joke.

John Wall wasn’t just a star on the court, he was a pillar off of it. He gave millions to local causes, he physically showed up in neighborhoods to help feed families in need through his John Wall Family Foundation. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Wall’s foundation provided more than half a million dollars in rent assistance for district residents. Wall didn’t just talk, he walked the walk. For kids growing up in underprivileged areas of the DMV, Wall wasn’t just a star on the court, he was a neighborhood hero who they could see themselves in. In a city yearning for star power, Wall became the face of sports in the area and his community leadership made him beloved in a way that transcended wins and losses.

Wall’s tenure in D.C. also coincides with Ted Leonsis buying the team back in 2010 and the decision of whether or not his jersey will be retired will ultimately fall on Leonsis. It has been noted that the two’s relationship was strained leading up to his trade from the Wizards to the Rockets in 2020, but Ted Leonsis’ tweet this week acknowledging Wall’s retirement may be a step in the right direction for amends between the two and a harsh realization for Leonsis that drafting Wall in 2010 may be the most successful decision he has ever made as a basketball owner.

At the end of the day, jersey retirement isn’t just about honoring a player, it’s about honoring an era. For the entire existence of the Washington Wizards since 1997 that era belongs to John Wall. So when you walk into Capital One Arena years from now, and you look up to the rafters, what numbers will you see? Unseld. Hayes. Monroe. Chenier. And right beside them… No. 2 John Wall, because Wall wasn’t just a Wizard, he was Washington D.C.