HOUSTON — One day after former player John Wall made disparaging comments about the Rockets, head coach Stephen Silas took time during his pregame press conference to respond.
“What John Wall went through here, and the situation that happened, was unprecedented,” Silas said when asked about Wall’s comments. “There was gonna be no easy way for it to go down. There’s gonna be no happiness on either side. We tried to make it as good as possible for him as an organization.”
“Obviously, the organization decided that the rebuild was going to be underway and talked to John about it,” Silas said Wednesday. “I had multiple conversations with John about it and came to the conclusion that him not playing would be the solution.”
Coming off an Achilles tear that had sidelined him since 2019, Wall was traded to Houston in December 2020 for Russell Westbrook and a first-round draft pick. Wall played 40 games in the 2020-21 season and was ready to become a leader in the locker room and on the floor, but the team had other plans.
“How would you feel coming off the bench,” Wall said (via the Run Your Race podcast) of his conversations with Silas. “I said, ‘For who? No offense, but for who? I was your best player last year.’”
“‘This is what the GM wants. He wants you to play 10-15 minutes a game, sometimes don’t play.’ I said, ‘I’m not doing that. Either you’re going to guarantee me some minutes, or I’m not. Let (a player) earn his spot.’ Coach said, ‘You don’t deserve that; you should be a starter. This is what they want to do.’”
Silas reiterated on Wednesday that Wall was not interested in coming off the bench and was very frustrated that he was being included in a rebuild situation.
“I’ve always had a good relationship with John,” Silas said. “Obviously, with the commitment to the rebuild as far as this organization is concerned, that’s a pretty big bold move to eat his salary and decide that we’re gonna go with these young guys and have them learn from mistakes and learn from experience and we’re all in.”
“So, I see it from both sides, for sure. I wouldn’t say I was surprised when John said that, but at some level, there’s frustration. And I get it, I understand it, but this is the direction the organization’s going in, and it’s painful. There’s nothing easy about a rebuild.”
Wall also commented on the podcast about the Rockets’ core of young players — he named Jalen Green, KJ Martin, and Kevin Porter Jr. — and stated that the things they were getting away with in Houston would get them to put out the league on other teams.
“I would say this situation is very different than any other situation I’ve been in with young guys because we have so many,” Silas said of Houston’s ongoing franchise rebuild. “There’s 19- and 20-year-olds who are the ones who drive the bus, basically. As far as holding them accountable, some of it is learning from mistakes, learning through adversity, learning from film sessions.”
General manager Rafael Stone, who Wall mentioned in his remarks, was not available for comment.
Rockets second-year player Jalen Green was asked about the situation postgame and responded with, “I have no comment on that.”
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