John Wall has been in rehab since undergoing knee procedures after the end of last season. We’ve also seen Wall work out early in the morning and state that this season, he’ll be in the best shape of his life, if not right then.
Earlier this week, Wizards Head Coach Scott Brooks told Ben Standig of CSN Mid Atlantic that Wall is now playing one-on-one basketball, but his return date is still unknown (h/t to Hands11 for the original FanPost):
"We're in no rush," Brooks stated. "We want to make sure that he's ready. It's a process. We still have all of training camp. We'll see. We're going to keep working, keep pushing him. The one thing about John. He puts the work in."
So, this is a concern.
The Wizards need Wall in order to return to the playoffs in 2017 and make a deep playoff run. If Wall is not back in time for the regular season, the first few games will be challenges. They face the Hawks and Grizzlies on the road, followed by the Raptors and Hawks at home in each of their first four games.
After a road game against the Orlando Magic, the Wizards have a three game homestand against the Rockets, Celtics, and Cavaliers. This is pretty front loaded schedule. Most opponents made the playoffs last year or better. If the Wizards don’t have Wall, don’t be surprised the see Washington start out slow.
But even if Wall is ready for the regular season, it’s possible that he will miss much of training camp. Then these important games essentially become his training camp.
Though his health comes first before playing, what we heard by Brooks last week could very well mean that Wall may miss much of the preseason or more. Hopefully, I’m wrong on this one.