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Howard tabs John Wall as president of basketball ops

By Thomson Reuters Apr 30, 2026 | 10:49 AM

Five-time NBA All-Star and former top overall draft pick John Wall is returning to the Washington.

ESPN reported on Thursday that Wall ​has become the president of basketball operations ‌at Howard, based in D.C. and a top-ranked HBCU program.

Wall played the first nine seasons of his NBA career with Washington after being selected by the Wizards with ‌the ​top overall pick of the ⁠2010 draft out of ⁠Kentucky. He averaged 19.0 points, 9.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds in 573 career games (561 starts) with Washington.

Wall, 35, served as Howard’s honorary captain ​for the team’s game against Norfolk State on Jan. 31. Per ESPN, he reportedly expressed ⁠to the school of having ⁠an interest in serving as president ​of basketball operations at the NBA level one day.

Wall ​will work alongside Howard coach Kenny Blakeney and ‌team general manager Daniel Marks in his new role.

Wall, who did not play in 2019-20, was involved in a blockbuster trade with the Houston ⁠Rockets on Dec. 2, 2020, that saw Russell Westbrook sent to Washington. The Wizards sent Wall and a ⁠first-round pick in ‌the 2023 NBA Draft to the ⁠Rockets for Westbrook and a lottery-protected ​first-round ‌pick in the same 2023 draft.

Wall ​played one ⁠season in Houston (2020-21), sat out the 2021-22 season with an injury and came back to compete in 34 games with the Clippers in 2022-23. He officially retired from the NBA on Aug. 19, 2025.

–Field ​Level Media