Read the opposing arguments from Loyal Homer and Bleacher Fan.
It sure is easy to hand Ohio State’s Evan Turner the college basketball national Player of the Year award (especially after Friday’s game-winner), isn’t it? But, if Bleacher Fan is unable to convince anyone of Evan Turner’s greatness, a few sentences of accolades won’t cut it here. The point is, Turner is a great player who had a great season. But he is NOT the ONLY player in college basketball to have a great season – no matter what the talking faces on ESPN and CBS say. While Turner fills up a stat sheet, Kentucky’s John Wall fills up the win column, and is the straw that stirs the drink on a sure-fire number one seed next week.
While Turner’s stats are nice, John Wall has amassed some excellent stats this season as well. He is averaging just under 17 points per game, four rebounds (not bad for a six-foot something guard), and over six assists per game. While he shoots 46 percent from the field, his 33 percent clip from behind the 3 point line is solid, as is his 78 percent accuracy from the free throw line.
Oh, and he’s a 19-year-old freshman in college and the point guard on arguably the best team in the entire country.
Wall’s stats are solid, but his work ethic is too, by evidence of his willingness to use his amazing speed at both ends of the floor. Yes, that’s right, John Wall plays defense. Getting technical for a moment, there is a reason coach’s recruit speed. Wall’s quick lateral movement on the perimeter makes it very difficult to turn the corner on him on a pick and roll, and very hard to beat him back in transition. Going the other direction, Wall is an excellent finisher around the basket in the unlikely event he is not the first person to reach it due to his speed.
Wall makes the other players on the floor better in a way Evan Turner cannot. While Turner is an ISO player for Ohio State – a skill that will serve him well at the next level, especially – Wall makes other players better… and here’s what I mean. It’s not just the direct, easy-to-see stat line where it is super obvious that a player is good for a team based on the number of assists they log. John Wall does not always get the most assists in a game. Often he will make the right pass to start a ball swing to the opposite side of the floor, resulting in a wide open three point shot attempt or an easy entry pass into the post for a high percentage shot. Those types of plays do not show up in the stat line, but they perfectly describe the impact a player like John Wall has on a team.
Wall’s speed and position – point guard – also translate well into a natural leadership role, even for a youngster. Leadership breeds confidence – and confidence breeds clutch shots.
Perhaps the most critical and difficult to replicate aspect of Wall’s game is his ability to make the big play when it matters the most. Wall’s game is not devoted solely to what shots or passes he makes, it is devoted in large part to when he makes them. In short, John Wall is clutch… and not just one time, but many times during the course of the season. Whether it’s a last second layup or a clutch jump shot, Wall does not shy away from the spotlight. He has proven that he is able to make the play when the most is on the line.
Of course Kentucky is a deeper team than Ohio State. Wall definitely has more players with more skills around him that Turner does. Though Wall may not fill up a stat sheet like Turner does, he fills up the coach’s checklist, the win column… and the stat sheet, too.
[...] the opposing arguments from Sports Geek and Loyal [...]