Wall: Wizards shooting for East finals, championship 'a long shot'

The Washington Wizards have completely turned their season around after a miserable start, sitting just three games back of the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and a half-game away from home-court advantage throughout at least the first two rounds of the playoffs.

That's a far cry from early December, when Washington was 7-13 and languishing near the Eastern Conference cellar behind such juggernauts as the Orlando Magic and New York Knicks. Since then, the Wizards' pieces have started to jell, coach Scott Brooks has coaxed more defensive buy-in, and the backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal has been as good as any in the NBA.

Now, the Wizards have their sights set on accomplishing something the franchise hasn't done since the '70s.

"Our main goal is to get to the conference finals," Wall told The Undefeated's Marc J. Spears. "We feel like we should have been there before if nobody got injured. Our goal is to get there."

Asked about an NBA title, Wall answered: "It's a long shot. Nobody would think about it the way we started. Like I always say, you never know what can happen. It's all about being healthy. It's all about being the hot team … In seven games (in a playoff series), let's see who can win four games first."

Wall and Beal have long maintained that the Wizards would've beaten the Atlanta Hawks in the East semis two years ago if Wall hadn't missed three games in that series with a fractured wrist. Last year, the Wizards dealt with injuries up and down the roster from the moment the season began, and never really got on track. This year, finally, they're healthy and peaking at the right time.

Still, given the Cavs' ongoing Eastern Conference hegemony - not to mention the murderers' row lurking out West - Wall isn't wrong to acknowledge that the odds are stacked against his team.