Wall blames ugly performance vs. Heat on fluid buildup in knee

John Wall was not himself Friday against the Miami Heat.

Just two days removed from putting up 27 points in Miami, to go with six assists, four rebounds, and even two blocks, Wall was completely nonexistent in the first three quarters Friday. The normally electric Washington Wizards point guard was held scoreless until the final frame as he missed all six of his attempts from the field (his first points came on a three-pointer with 5:25 left in the fourth).

Following the contest, Wall shed light on what ailed him, citing a fluid buildup in his left knee as the reason for his limited mobility.

"I was looking like some butt out there," Wall said postgame, according to Chase Hughes of NBCSports Washington.

Wall attested he initially took the IVs to deal with an illness he battled last wekeend.

"I felt like some s---," he said.

The severity of Wall's knee ailment is unclear, though it's not the first injury to plague the 27-year-old this season. He also injured his left shoulder against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Nov. 3, forcing him to miss Washington's next game against the Toronto Raptors.

Wall did seem to find a way to power through the pain in the final frame Friday, and the Wizards nearly pulled off the victory even as their captain hobbled around the court. He finished the game with eight points, eight assists, and three rebounds, though Bradley Beal's jumper on Washington's final possession hit iron, and the Heat walked away with the 91-88 win.

The loss will go down as Wall's worst performance of the season. In his 13 other games this campaign, he had never scored fewer than 13 points.