The Houston Rockets paid an awful lot of money to five-time All-Star defender John Wall last season for not playing for the team.
While Wall was healthy and eager to take the court at some point, the recovering Rockets found a way to persuade Wall to focus on staying healthy and improving without playing games.
Wall has not been on the court since the 2020-2021 NBA season. And it doesn’t look like the former All-Star will play another game, as long as he’s in the Rockets, who want to move on.
Buying a contract could have been an option last year, but Wall was ready to sit on the bench and receive his $ 44 million salary. While the Rockets were considering trading on the Wall, there were no deals worth the time.
As the off-season of 2022 begins to heat up, the Rockets will continue to search the commercial market in search of a potential suitor for Wall. According to Jake Fisher of Report for Bleacherthe failure to find a new landing site for Wall before the 2022 NBA draft will more than likely prompt Rockets and Wall to reconsider the buyout discussion so the 31-year-old guard can hit the market as a sign elsewhere.
“If the Rockets fail to find a deal for Wall before the June 23 NBA draft, all indications are that Houston and Wall will revise the buyout talks before the free agency in July. In that case, Wall would become an unlimited free agent.
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Should Sixers be interested?
During the off-season in 2021, there were brief talks about a possible replacement for John Wal-Ben Simmons, after the three-time All-Star requested an exchange of 76ers. Trade talks between the Sixers and the Rockets did not heat up. In the end, Daryl Mori’s patience paid off and attracted Philly James Harden.
The Wall swap was never an option for the Sixers, but signing the veteran defender is a different story. How long is Wall left in the tank? Well, based on his last stay of 40 games, he averaged 19 points in 32 minutes per game. He also made 6.9 assists per game, shooting 40 percent of the field and 31 percent of three, which is exactly around his career average.
Sixers corrected the lack of reliable ball handlers in the starting lineup problem when they received Harden. But apart from Harden and developing Tyris Maxi, Philly is weak in the playmaking department.
If Wall is ready to take on the role of six people at this point in his career, he must be someone the Sixers are watching as question marks surround Shake Milton and Philly’s other reserve guards. So far, however, only two teams have been associated with Wall, as the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat have been proposed as “strong potential landing sites” for Wall, according to Fisher.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
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