The Houston Rockets have been looking for a deal to make involving John Wall all season. The team and Wall agreed that he wouldn’t play, as the Rockets are in the early stages of a rebuild and wanted to give as many minutes as possible to their young players.
Wall is healthy enough to play but has remained on the sidelines. There have been some discussions about getting him back into the lineup, but not much progress was made. As a result, he remains sidelined, essentially operating as another assistant coach and helping the young guys along.
John Wall isn’t the same player he was before missing nearly two years because of a heel and Achilles injury, but in the right situation, could still produce. In his return to action last season, Wall averaged 20.6 points, 6.9 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 32.3 minutes per game.
Another year removed from surgery and with an offseason to continue rounding into shape, Wall would likely produce at an even better clip this season. He just needs a team to take a chance on him, but that is easier said than done.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Teams Expressing Interest In Rockets’ John Wall — Latest
Wall’s huge contract and a player option for next season are a major deterrent. There have been some talks that Houston would engage in trade negotiations with the Los Angeles Lakers centered around Russell Westbrook and the team’s 2027 first-round pick, but nothing was imminent.
The other Los Angeles team, the LA Clippers, is another one to keep an eye on when it comes to John Wall. That information comes courtesy of The Athletic, paid subscription website.
The reality is that with two seasons remaining on his contract (and 2022-23 being a player option for more than $47 million), the pickings are slim. Houston has recently received calls from a handful of teams about potentially acquiring Wall, sources tell The Athletic, but due to the aforementioned contract constraints, rival teams continue to simply monitor the situation. One such team that had expressed genuine interest earlier in the season was the LA Clippers, sources say, but there is some confusion from an outsider’s perspective on the Clippers’ objectives heading into the deadline.
The LA Clippers are in a tough spot. Their two best players, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are both sidelined with injury so this likely will be a gap year. However, they do not own their first-round pick. That will be conveyed to the Oklahoma City Thunder from the George trade and it is unprotected.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Teams Expressing Interest In Rockets’ John Wall — Latest
LA has been looking for some upgrades at the point guard position, and Wall could provide that. He would bring some dynamism to a Clippers team that is sometimes overreliant on Leonard and George to carry the load on both ends of the court.
Figuring out compensation for John Wal in a deal with the Houston Rocketsl, however, is not easy. The LA Clippers would likely have to part with multiple players to get a deal done to match salaries. Houston also has no interest in attaching draft capital to Wall to complete a trade, so, likely, he doesn’t go anywhere this season.
