John Wall ended up attending three different high schools, but only playing for two of these schools. He first attended Garner Magnet High School in Garner, North Carolina. He played there for two years. Following his sophomore year, his family decided to move to Raleigh, North Carolina, forcing him to transfer to Needham B. Broughton High School. Despite a dominant tryout, Wall was cut from the varsity team due to his poor attitude. Wall then decided to transfer to Word of God Christian Academy in Raleigh. His number one goal there was to reform his attitude issues. In his senior year, Wall averaged 19.7 points, 9 assists, and 8 rebounds per game for Word of God. Wall’s team was defeated in the championship that year, however. He was then invited to play in the Jordan Brand Classic. Subsequently, Wall became a 5-Star, top-rated point guard in the class. 

After being sought after by many top programs in the country, Wall committed to the University of Kentucky on May 19, 2009. His Wildcats career did not start as planned, however. He was forced to miss the first exhibition and regular-season game of the year due to travel benefits he received from a former AAU coach. Wall made his Wildcats debut against Miami University. Wall topped off a 19 point, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals night with a game-winning shot with just 0.5 seconds remaining on the clock; a Kentucky legend was born. Wall then set the Kentucky Wildcats single-game assist record with 16 assists against Hartford in a December 29, 2009 matchup.

After a disappointing loss in the NCAA Tournament for one of the most talented Kentucky Wildcats rosters in history, Wall was inducted into the University of Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame. He then declared for the 2010 NBA Draft. 

After flirting with the idea of going professional after high school, Wall ultimately decided to attend the University of Kentucky for one season. Following his dominant year as a Wildcat, Wall was selected with the first overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by the Washington Wizards on April 7, 2010. In Wall’s NBA debut, he tallied 14 points, 9 assists, and 3 steals against the Orlando Magic. In just his third game, he tied the Wizards franchise record with 9 steals. As a rookie, Wall also recorded his first career triple-double in a 19 point, 10 rebounds, 13 assists, and 6 steals outing on November 10. He finished the year second in Rookie of the Year voting behind Blake Griffin.

The 2011-12 season was shortened by the NBA lockout. However, Wall appeared in all 66 games while averaging 16.3 points, 8 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game. Wall then missed the beginning of the 2012-13 season with a knee injury. He came back strong in January but posted a then career-high 47 points on the Memphis Grizzlies on March 25. He averaged 18.5 points, 7,6 assists, and 4 rebounds per game that year. Subsequently, the Wizards signed Wall to a five-year, $80 million extension in 2013. He was later named a 2014 NBA All-Star reserve that year. He also became the first Washington Wizard to ever win the Slam Dunk Contest. Wall added a 31 point game, as well as a then career-high 16 assist game later in the 2014 season. He upped his averages to 19.3 points, 8.8 assists, and 4.2 rebounds per game in 2014. 

In the 2014-15 season, Wall earned his first NBA All-Star starter appearance. He twice scored a season-high 31 points in the 2014-15 season. The Washington Wizards were eliminated by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs. In the 2015-16 season, Wall set a new career-high assist game with 19 assists in a December 21 matchup with the Sacramento Kings. Later in that season, Wall recorded back-to-back triple-doubles in the month of March against the Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers. Following the 2015-16 season, Wall had off-season surgery on both knees.

After the surgery, Wall was rested on back-to-back games early on in the 2016-27 season. The restriction only lasted until late November. On December 6, 2016, Wall poured in a career-high 52 points against the Orlando Magic. He also became the franchise leader in steals during the 2016-17 season. Following another exit in the playoffs, the Washington Wizards re-signed Wall to a four-year $170 million deal on July 26, 2017. On January 12, 2018, he tallied 30 points against the Orlando Magic, helping him become the youngest player in franchise history to score 10,000 career points. At the end of January, Wall was sidelined for an extended period of time due to a knee injury. After minor surgery, he missed two months. He made his return and later passed 5,000 career assists in a win over the Boston Celtics on April 10.  Once again, the Wizards fell in the playoffs that year. The 2018-19 season started with more dominance for Wall, but it was ended rather quickly. After reaching third on the Washington Wizards all-time scoring list, and pouring in 40 points on the Lakers, Wall was ruled out for the rest of the season on December 29. John Wall suffered a left heel injury that required surgery. Wall then developed an infection in the incision, and later fell at home on the injured heel, rupturing his Achilles tendon. The Achilles tendon injury has caused him to miss the rest of the 2018-19 season, as well as the entirety of the 2019-20 season.