"John Wall said that he would "probably not" be available on Sunday when the Wizards face the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills, Mich. Wall has missed the past three games and is recovering from a sprained left foot suffered on Nov. 13 in Chicago.

"It's still swollen," Wall said, as he left the Wizards locker room at Verizon Center.

He also had a bone bruise on the inside of the ankle that has contributed to some swelling in his foot. Wall is free from his protective walking boot, but was limited to shooting and non-contact drills on Saturday at a brief practice. He said his foot is getting better and is hoping to be possibly ready by Tuesday, when the Wizards host Philadelphia.

"It's hard to push off, from it," Wall said, "but it got way better than it was before. I can walk on it without the boot. I'm just waiting, basically taking time and taking treatment for it."

Wall is the Wizards' leader in scoring (18.1 points) and assists (9.8) and leads the league in steals (3.3). He has been anxious to return, but thrilled to see how the team has responded in his absence, with Gilbert Arenas taking a more active role scoring and Kirk Hinrich, a natural point guard, doing more ball handling and distributing.

"It's been tough [not playing]. I always want to be out there to help my team, but they're doing a great job, they're 2-1 right now, winning and playing together and getting their confidence up and learning how to win," Wall said.

Wall said he has used his time away as a learning experience, so that he can be better whenever he returns. "I've learned a whole lot, watching and seeing what plays are open, how people are guarding them and what kind of reads you got. Ever since I 've been playing, I've been watching game tapes. But I'm just focused more on how guys are getting to score. You can learn from what people are telling you when they sit down on the sideline. You see how teams are guarding you.""