John Wall wants Wizards to revert to Bullets nickname

Having already gone back to the old-school, Bullets-style uniform, John Wall wants the Washington Wizards to go one step further and revert their team nickname back to the Washington Bullets.

Sitting on the second level of Portland's Compound Gallery waiting to sign autographs with fellow All-Star Damian Lillard, Wall told the Washington Post of his desire for the switch while wearing a Bullets baseball cap.

"I like the Bullets hats," said Wall with hip hop blaring in the background. "I like wearing them. I just think they have more style, more flavor. The Wizards logo is cool. I like all that, but I wish we could go back to these - but I know we're never going back. One time in my career, I would like to wear some throwback jerseys, just one time, one time. I want to wear it one time. I know it's tough, but it'd be cool."

Wall is almost certainly right when he says the Wizards are "never going back" to the Bullets nickname.

To begin with, Washington has had a serious problem with gun violence since the nationwide crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s. Crime rates have declined since then, but the topic remains a sensitive one, particularly among older residents of the city.

Furthermore, any chance of returning to the Bullets nickname was surely ruined in 2009 by the gun-in-the-locker-room incident involving Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton. The franchise had changed its nickname to the Wizards in 1997 as a means of distancing itself from gun violence, and the altercation accomplished the exact opposite.

For now, Wall will simply have to enjoy the track "Washington Bullets" by The Clash.