John Wall Says He Deserved Supermax Contract

Injury Wizards guard John Wall on supermax contract: "I did deserve this, I did earn this. It was never given to me."

Washington Wizards guard John Wall will likely miss the 2019-20 season as he recovers from a tore Achilles tendon sustained after a fall at his home in February.

By the time he returns to the court, it will be a roughly 18-month absence from playing competitive basketball.

Even though he is a five-time All-Star with career averages of 20.7 points and 8.7 assists, it's his contract extension that seems to get the most scrutiny.

In the summer of 2017, Wall signed a four-year, $171 million Designated Veteran Player contract extension, better known as the "supermax."

Wall addressed those critical of the deal in an interview with NBC Sports Washington.

"The only thing I questioned was 'the worst contract in NBA history,'" Wall said. "That was my lowest point because I was like do I really deserve this money? Did I really earn it?"

"I looked back at all the years and all the things I've been through and said yes, I did deserve this, I did earn this. It was never given to me.

Wall, 28, is set to take home $38.2 million this season in the first year of the deal. The final year of the contract is in the 2022-23 season and Wall will make $47.3 million.

"To say I have the worst contract in NBA history, that's all I needed," Wall said. "The ones that doubted me on the highest level I don't speak to because I know my game will do the talking when I get back to playing."