John Wall out for two weeks

Here is what the Wizards did not want hear: John Wall again has a knee issue.

He does, and he will be out approximately two weeks because of it, the team announced Saturday morning.

Wall, who is averaging 20.3 points and 9.2 assists per game, had an MRI exam Friday because of knee-to-knee contact Nov. 7 against the Dallas Mavericks, according to the team. The results prompted doctor Dr. Richard D. Parker at the Cleveland Clinic Marymount — who performed Wall’s minor offseason knee surgeries in May of 2016 —- and Wizards head team physician Wiemi Douoguih to determine Wall needed a platelet-rich plasma injection to expedite healing and viscosupplementation injections to reduce swelling in his knee. He received those in the District on Friday. Two weeks of rest will follow.

Previously, Wall had calcium deposits in his left knee removed in an effort to eliminate pain. He also had an arthroscopic lavage procedure to clean out his right knee. Both surgeries were done early in the summer of 2016. Wall said he felt great afterward and went on to have his best season.

Wall had been dealing with fluid buildup in his knee for more than a week. He posited that extra fluid from an IV had gathered in his left knee, causing stiffness and soreness. The Wizards said that Wall’s current knee issue is independent of the IVs he received, and his previous knee problems.

“We’ve been monitoring it,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. “We had it drained. We felt like this is the best thing. Meeting with Dr. Parker — his doctor that performed the surgery in Cleveland and Dr. [Douogui] our doctor — the next best step is the PRP. It’s irritated and inflamed, so, we figure it’s the early part of the season and we’re in no rush, give him the best chance to come back. We tried to drain it, we tried to rest — he’s been resting some of his practices and shootaround… It’s not the ideal situation to lose one of your best players for a couple weeks, but it’s next-man mentality.”

Wall would play one night, but sit out the next. He missed the Nov. 19 game against the Toronto Raptors because of the knee problem. That came two days after Wall played against the Miami Heat, then said his knee was stiff throughout the evening. He thought it was hard to get loose in the Wizards’ notoriously cool home arena, since he was able to play two nights before in Miami without trouble. He played 41 minutes Nov. 22, then missed practice Friday in order to have his knee assessed.

Wall’s absence means the Wizards, a vacillating 10-8, will turn to Tim Frazier and Tomas Satoransky to run the point. Frazier has struggled scoring and defending in his backup role, though he has distributed the ball with aplomb. Satoransky has spent most of the season on the bench and out of coach Scott Brooks’ rotation. Their time as the primary point guards starts Saturday night when Wall will be in street clothes and the Portland Trail Blazers — sporting one of the game’s best backcourts — visits the District.