Tag: John Wall

NBA analyst Brian Scalabrine urges Nets to consider adding John Wall

NBA analyst and former player Brian Scalabrine is urging the Brooklyn Nets to consider making a move to acquire Rockets guard John Wall. Here’s what a hypothetical trade might look like.

Former Nets player and current league analyst Brian Scalabrine is urging his former franchise to acquire Houston Rockets guard John Wall.

“If I’m Brooklyn, I’m seriously thinking about John Wall over Kyrie Irving,” Scalabrine said during a recent segment on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “John Wall has (more) positional size. You can play him multiple positions. When motivated, he can guard. At least I would have some size out there. He might be a better fit, to me, than Kyrie Irving.”

While Wall and Irving are both point guards, Wall offers much more defensive versatility and more of a pass-first approach to the position.

If the Nets do have interest in Wall, the storyline to monitor from a Houston perspective is whether it would be solely in the event of a contract buyout, or if the Nets like him enough to consider trades.

Some will undoubtedly ask the obvious question: If Wall might be bought out, why would the Nets consider surrendering any value to the Rockets to acquire a player they might could obtain as a free agent?

For starters, a buyout is no guarantee. Led by general manager Rafael Stone, the Rockets have held firm on their desire to trade Wall for nearly a calendar year, rather than buy him out. Second, if Wall was to be bought out, he would then become an unrestricted free agent. There would be no guarantee in Wall picking the Nets over other potential suitors, which reportedly could include the Heat and Clippers.

The tricky part is in any hypothetical Wall trade is matching salaries, since Wall will make over $47 million in the 2022-23 season. Yet, with Brooklyn and Irving, it’s not as hard as it would be for most teams. Should Irving opt in to the final year of his existing contract ($36.9 million) to facilitate a trade, or choose to enter free agency and sign a new contract, his salary would be nearly enough by itself to make a Wall trade feasible.

At 30 years old, Irving and the rebuilding Rockets (or most other teams with salary cap room this offseason) likely aren’t a match. But it’s not impossible to see a three-team trade scenario where Irving finds a fit with another contender, and the Kevin Durant-led Nets view Wall — as a drop-in replacement at Irving’s same position — as a better fit for their win-now emphasis. In such a scenario, the salary matching assets from the team acquiring Irving could be redirected to Houston.

It’s admittedly a longshot, and Scalabrine’s comments were speculative rather than sourced. Yet, if the Nets want Wall, it is doable.

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Bleacher Report proposes John Wall, Christian Wood, Garrison Mathews trades for Rockets

John Wall to the Lakers? How about Christian Wood to Golden State? Here’s our analysis of Bleacher Report’s latest NBA trade proposals involving the Rockets and whether they make sense.

With the 2022 playoffs field narrowed from 16 teams to four, the NBA’s highly anticipated 2022 offseason is right around the corner. As the June 23 draft approaches, trade talks will pick up around the league.

As usual, general manager Rafael Stone and the Rockets should be among the more active teams. Though Houston is clearly in a rebuilding phase, there are a number of highly priced veterans (John Wall, Christian Wood, and Eric Gordon) who could be of interest to contending teams.

Best of all, each member of that trio is entering the final season of their existing contracts in 2022-23, which could make them more desirable on the trade market due to the lack of a long-term financial commitment.

With trade rumors swirling, Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report recently proposed one offseason trade idea for each of the league’s 30 teams. Here’s what he came up with involving the Rockets, along with our verdicts on whether or not each is advisable for Stone to pursue. All of these proposals work within the NBA’s salary matching rules for trades.

Are the Clippers a potential offseason fit for Rockets guard John Wall?

Various reports have mentioned the Los Angeles Clippers as a possible John Wall suitor this offseason, but would he accept a potential backup role behind Reggie Jackson?

Houston has a plethora of young guards on its roster for next season, which makes veteran point guard John Wall unlikely to return to action for the Rockets next season. Now I know that I am not telling most Rockets fans something they had not already prepared for, especially with Wall being held out of the entire 2021-22 NBA season.

Houston tried to make a move before the trade deadline to find Wall a new place to play, but potential deals fell through. A new team could acquire the five-time former All-Star from the Rockets this offseason.

Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report recently alluded to the Los Angeles Clippers being interested in Wall, who averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists per game in the 40 games he played in two seasons ago.

The Clippers’ current issue at the point guard position is they have no true backup for Reggie Jackson, who is under contract for one more season. If Wall is traded to Los Angeles, it will be interesting to see if he would buy into coming off the bench, something he was not interested in doing for Houston. Moreover, if the Clippers are unable to pull off a Wall trade due to the difficulty of matching salaries and choose to wait on a potential contract buyout, it’s possible that Wall could subsequently choose a destination with a more clear path to starting minutes.

Wall, 31, has a player option for the 2022-23 season at $47.4 million. If he is not traded and ultimately can agree to a buyout with the Rockets, he would immediately become an unrestricted free agent and could sign with any NBA team. Reportedly, Wall’s goal is to resolve his situation with Houston before the start of free agency in early July.

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2021-22 Rockets roster review, offseason outlook: John Wall

The Rockets couldn’t find an acceptable John Wall trade during the 2021-22 season, but Houston is hopeful that one will materialize in the 2022 offseason, now that he is an expiring contract.

(Editor’s note: We are continuing our individual reviews of all players from the Houston Rockets who finished the 2021-22 season with the team. To access other reviews as part of this ongoing series, click here.)

Rockets Player: John Wall, 6-foot-4 guard, 31 years old

2020-21 statistics: 20.6 points (40.4% FG, 31.7% on 3-pointers), 6.9 assists, 3.2 rebounds in 32.2 minutes per game

Professional Experience: 11 NBA seasons

Contract Status: Under contract for 2022-23 at $47.4 million; free agent in 2023 offseason

Wall’s latest statistics are from the 2020-21 season, since he did not play at all in 2021-22 due to a mutual agreement between the player and club. Given Houston’s rebuilding state and a clear emphasis on developing young prospects, the Rockets chose to give Kevin Porter Jr. the starting role at point guard. Wall was offered a backup role, but the five-time All-Star was reportedly uninterested in such an arrangement.

The Rockets and Wall tried to work together on a trade, but given the size of his bloated contract and with two seasons still left at that time, nothing got to the finish line. Perhaps that changes in the 2022 offseason, now that Wall has become an expiring salary. If it does not, a contract buyout appears likely. Neither the team nor player was interested in buyout talks in 2021-22, but the financial figures will become much more manageable now that Wall’s contract only has one season left on it.

The Rockets acquired Wall in December 2020, which was when James Harden was still there and Houston had yet to make its rebuild pivot.

Report: Pacers previously expressed interest in acquiring Rockets guard John Wall

Prior to trading for Tyrese Haliburton in February, the Pacers expressed interest in acquiring veteran point guard John Wall, according to longtime NBA scribe Marc Stein.

Prior to trading with Sacramento for young floor general Tyrese Haliburton, the Indiana Pacers reportedly showed interest in acquiring five-time All-Star guard John Wall. It is unclear whether that interest was via a trade with the Houston Rockets or after a potential contract buyout.

“League sources say that at least one other previously unreported team expressed interest in Wall this season: Indiana,” longtime NBA scribe Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack newsletter. “Sources say that the Pacers’ interest, though, was registered before they acquired Tyrese Haliburton from Sacramento and didn’t go any further.”

Wall averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists per game during a successful 2020-21 season in Houston. Now 31 years old, Wall did not play in the 2021-22 campaign, with the rebuilding Rockets focused on the development of 21-year-old prospect Kevin Porter Jr. at point guard. Wall was reportedly offered a backup role before declining that arrangement.

Though Wall still has value as a basketball player, the difficulty in finding him another NBA home likely has to do with his contract, which paid him $44.3 million this year and calls for him to be paid $47.4 million next season. That limits his suitors, since most teams with anywhere near that type of salary cap room are focused on younger options — and franchises above the cap (i.e. most) may lack the requisite matching salaries to make a trade work financially under the collective bargaining agreement.

For example, the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat reportedly have interest in Wall this offseason, but only in a scenario where the Rockets buy out his contract — since matching salaries would be difficult.

The Pacers no longer appear to be a fit for Wall, since Haliburton is a promising prospect at point guard who is substantially younger. But their registered interest during the season might offer hope that an off-the-radar suitor for Wall could emerge in the 2022 offseason, particularly now that his contract has only one season left on it.

The Pacers did have several expiring contracts this season (Ricky Rubio at $17.8 million, TJ Warren at $12.9 million, and Tristan Thompson at $8.9 million). So, in theory, they could have made the math work with Houston prior to the Feb. 10 trade deadline. While it is unclear from Stein’s report whether Indiana was offering to go to such an aggressive length, or if their interest was solely in the event of a buyout, a team like the Pacers might feel compelled to trade for Wall — since Wall would likely choose a contending team (such as the Clippers or Heat) if he became a free agent.

Houston Chronicle beat writer Jonathan Feigen reported shortly after deadline day that a trade sending Wall to a non-Lakers team (many reports at the time were speculating about a Wall-Russell Westbrook swap) came much closer than a deal with Los Angeles, but Feigen did not identify who that other team was. It’s possible that it was the Pacers.

Whatever the case, it seems unlikely that the Pacers will have interest in the 2022 offseason, given the positional overlap between Wall and Halliburton. But that anecdote might offer hope that another unexpected suitor could emerge in talks with Rockets general manager Rafael Stone.

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Podcast: Shaedon Sharpe enters 2022 NBA draft pool, potential offseason Rockets deals, and more

Friday’s episode of The Launch Pad Podcast explores the implications of Shaedon Sharpe joining the 2022 NBA draft pool, along with analysis of potential offseason trades and signings for the Rockets.

Featuring Ben DuBose (USA TODAY’s Rockets Wire) alongside Don Knock and Paulo Alves (Clutch City Control Room), Friday’s newly released episode of The Launch Pad Podcast breaks down the latest wave of offseason news and rumors pertaining to the Houston Rockets.

The topic of the day is the implications of University of Kentucky product Shaedon Sharpe declaring for the 2022 NBA draft, in which the Rockets are guaranteed to have a top-five selection. Sharpe is viewed by many draft experts as having the most star potential of anyone outside of the consensus top four (Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero, and Jaden Ivey), so his inclusion in the pool could be big for Houston.

Beyond Sharpe, other topics discussed on Friday’s podcast include:

  • Acceptable offseason trades for veterans Eric Gordon and Christian Wood, and whether there’s a market for John Wall;
  • What head coach Stephen Silas needs to show in the 2022-23 season to keep his job and potentially earn a contract extension;
  • What needs to change to improve Houston’s defense, which ranked dead last among the 30 NBA teams in defensive rating;
  • Plausible veteran free-agent targets in the 2022 offseason.

The podcast can be watched via YouTube (see embed below) and listened to via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and more (Linktree).

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How likely is a Westbrook-Wall swap between Lakers and Rockets?

How much mutual interest is there between the Lakers and Rockets in a trade involving Russell Westbrook and John Wall?

Prior to the trade deadline this season, there was chatter about the Los Angeles Lakers possibly trading Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for former All-Star guard John Wall.

But as of now, it seems like the Lakers don’t value Wall and that the Rockets don’t covet Westbrook either.

Via Lakers Daily:

“A recent report states that the Lakers’ front office doesn’t appear to “truly value” Wall while the Rockets’ front office seems to feel the same way about Westbrook.

“’But those February conversations between Houston and the Los Angeles Lakers never gained serious traction, sources told B/R,’ Jake Fischer reported. ‘The Rockets sought a future Lakers first-rounder, which was a non-starter for L.A.’s front office. It still seems unlikely that such a deal framework will ever cross the finish line.

“’From conversations with league figures familiar with those talks, neither front office appears to truly value the opposing player. And if the 33-year-old Wall picks up his $47.4 million player option for 2022-23 as expected, it could be even more challenging for Houston to shed him than for the Lakers to move Westbrook’s expiring contract.’”

This could actually be good news for the Lakers, as giving up one or two future first-round draft picks could be a bad decision for them down the road.

In addition, acquiring Wall would likely be, at best, a lateral move. As inefficient as Westbrook can be, Wall is even worse in that department.

In the 2020-21 season, the former Washington Wizards guard made just 40.4 percent of his shots from the field and shot only 31.7 percent from 3-point land.

Wall is also still making his way back from a torn Achilles he suffered a couple of years ago, while Westbrook has been something of an ironman lately.

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Report: Rockets, John Wall pushing for trade by 2022 NBA draft

The Rockets and John Wall are reportedly hoping for a trade by the 2022 NBA draft. If one doesn’t materialize, Wall would like a contract buyout prior to the start of July free agency.

The Houston Rockets and veteran guard John Wall are reportedly hoping for a trade by the 2022 NBA draft, and if one doesn’t materialize, Wall would like a contract buyout prior to the start of July free agency.

Wall, 31, has earned All-Star honors five times over his distinguished career. Yet, he did not play for Houston in 2021-22. With an emphasis on rebuilding and developing prospects, the Rockets chose to prioritize starting minutes at point guard for 21-year-old Kevin Porter Jr., and Wall was clearly not keen on accepting a limited role with backup minutes.

As of Thursday, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report has the latest:

If the Rockets are unable to find a trade for Wall before the June 23 NBA draft, all signs now point to Houston and Wall’s representation revisiting buyout talks prior to free agency in July. In that event, Wall would become an unrestricted free agent, and the Clippers, along with the Miami Heat, have been mentioned by league sources as strong potential landing spots for him.

From Houston’s perspective, a trade is clearly preferable to a buyout, since it would allow the team to recoup at least some value for Wall. That’s likely a big reason that buyout talks with Wall did not occur last season, since the Rockets would not have wanted to prematurely close the trade window prior to letting him walk for no compensation.

It’s certainly possible that Wall, who will be in the final year of his contract, could have more trade suitors as an expiring salary than he would have last season — when two years and approximately $92 million were left on his deal. But for both sides, it makes sense to set the June 23 draft as a deadline of sorts before moving on to buyout talks.

For Wall, if a buyout was delayed until later in the offseason and after the initial wave of signings in free agency, it’s possible that his rumored suitors (Clippers, Heat) might acquire alternative options and no longer have interest. For the Rockets, letting Wall go prior to free agency would open up another roster spot to potentially use in their pursuit of players who are a better fit with the organization’s rebuilding timeline.

Most NBA insiders have long seen a buyout as the likely resolution, with an emphasis on when, not if. It appears that still remains the case, and the “when” is prior to the first wave of 2022 free agency in July.

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Rockets GM Rafael Stone still hopeful of John Wall trade, rather than buyout

Though Rafael Stone did not rule out a contract buyout, Houston’s general manager said Monday that he remains optimistic about an eventual John Wall trade.

Though Houston Rockets general manager Rafael Stone did not rule out recent speculation related to a John Wall contract buyout, he said Monday that he remains optimistic about an eventual trade.

Wall has not played since the 2020-21 season, with Houston choosing in 2021-22 to make Kevin Porter Jr. the full-time starter at point guard. Wall, a five-time All-Star, was reportedly reluctant to accept the type of bench role behind Porter that ultimately went to Dennis Schroder.

Since then, the Rockets have tried to trade Wall, but the enormous size of his contract makes that difficult. However, since Wall will be an expiring contract in 2022-23, that might change the calculus.

“Absolutely nothing has changed,” Stone said. “I love John. We’re going to work together, like we always have. I’m very appreciative of him.”

“I think there’s a real market for John,” added Stone, who spoke as part of an end-of-season media availability after Sunday’s season finale. “I think we’ll find a deal that will work for him and for us, and if one doesn’t materialize, we’ll cross that bridge if and when it occurs. But that is not something he’s focused on, and is not something I’m focused on.”

Stone’s comments are in line with a recent report by HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, who said Wall and his representation at Klutch Sports will initially give Houston an opportunity to find a trade. However, if that is unsuccessful, Wall’s camp could push for a buyout prior to next season.

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Report: If no trade, John Wall wants Rockets buyout this offseason

NBA insider Michael Scotto: “If Houston can’t find a trade partner for Wall, his representation at Klutch Sports is expected to work with the Rockets on a buyout agreement before next season.”

John Wall didn’t play for the Houston Rockets in the 2021-22 season, with the rebuilding club choosing to evaluate 21-year-old Kevin Porter Jr. its starter at point guard. Though Wall, a five-time All-Star, would clearly like to play, he’s been understanding of the team’s approach, thus far.

That may not be his mindset heading into next season, though.

In the latest episode of the HoopsHype podcast, NBA insider Michael Scotto explains what he’s hearing on Wall, who is set to enter the final year of his existing contract with the Rockets. Scotto’s report:

As expected, John Wall is going to exercise his $47.4 million player option for next season, I’m told. After that, the Rockets will have time to look for a trade to move Wall. If Houston can’t find a trade partner for Wall, his representation at Klutch Sports is expected to work with the Rockets on a buyout agreement before next season. A potential buyout agreement would allow Wall to take advantage of the (free agent) market. Wall turns 32 in September. He’s healthy. I’ve heard he’d like to be on a winning team and have a role.

The complete episode can be listened to below, and it’s worth noting that Wall “liked” the podcast’s summary tweet by Scotto.

In short, it seems that Wall was understanding of the financial difficulty of a buyout when he had two seasons and approximately $92 million left on his contract. That’s an unprecedented total figure for a team to buy out and effectively pay the player to play for a different club.

But there is plenty of precedent for players on expiring contracts — even large ones — with rebuilding teams to get bought out.

General manager Rafael Stone will attempt to work out a trade, first, since extracting some value for Wall is certainly better for the Rockets than seeing him leave for no compensation. However, should that again not materialize, it sounds as if Wall and his agency representation will take a far more active role during 2022-23 in pursuing a buyout.

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