Stan Van Gundy talks John Wall

Back in December, the always outspoken Stan Van Gundy shocked most by stating that he didn't see John Wall as a player to build a franchise around.  Recently Van Gundy has seemed to have changed his mind on Wall.

“You know what, I’m sort of sitting on the fence now,” Van Gundy said. “So yeah, I havereevaluated. I don’t think anybody has done more for a team this year than John Wall has. Look, they were 5-28 when he came back. Five and 28. The worst team in the league. And they’re 21-16 since then.

“And if you look at the numbers, they’re the ninth-best team in the league if you compare defensive numbers and offensive numbers — the ninth-best team in the league, fourth-best team in the East since he’s come back,” Van Gundy continued. “So this is a team that you could project, with John Wall, could be not only a playoff team but be sitting with home-court in the playoffs. And they were the worst team in the league before he came back. Nobody else has done that for a team.

“But I look at his numbers and he’s still not a real efficient guy. Forty-five percent shooting’s  a little bit better, but for a point guard, 45 percent, and you don’t make many threes, that’s still not really efficient. Three-and-a-half turnovers a game. So there’s still some things to doubt, but his presence has been HUGE for that team, and they went from being a good defensive team, to a GREAT defensive team when he came back. They’re second in the league defensively since he came back.

“So I think that he has proven me wrong in terms of his value to a team. I’m still not sure he’s enough to build a team around, but if you could put a great offensive player around him, then possibly that could be enough to start pushing this team to the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference.”