Tag: John Wall

John Wall still wants to play, but deadline passes without trade

Five-time NBA All-Star John Wall still wants to play in the NBA this season, but that now appears unlikely after the 2022 trade deadline passed without a deal.

Five-time NBA All-Star John Wall still clearly wants to play in the league, but it now appears unlikely to occur in the 2021-22 season after Thursday’s trade deadline passed without a deal.

Though there was hope of a potential last-minute deal with the Lakers for Russell Westbrook, Los Angeles apparently did not budge on its refusal to include a future first-round draft pick to incentivize the Rockets. Without that, it simply made more sense for Houston to stick with the status quo, since they already had a non-playing agreement with Wall and Westbrook has shown no inclination to accept sitting out.

Just before training camp in September, the Rockets struck that agreement with Wall as part of a plan to give more backcourt usage to young guards like Kevin Porter Jr., Jalen Green, and Josh Christopher. Since they have the worst record in the Western Conference, there is no reason to change at this time from that developmental emphasis.

Though the unofficial “buyout season“ in the NBA runs through the end of February, since March 1 is the deadline for waived players to be playoff eligible with a new team, reports have continually suggested that neither Wall nor the Rockets is interested in a buyout this season. With two seasons left on the contract, the remaining dollar figure is simply too large for the sides to reach an agreement now.

Moreover, from the team’s perspective, more rival teams might want to trade for Wall in the offseason — when only one year is left on the contract. Even if that does not occur, the financial figure guiding the buyout negotiation terms would also appear to be less daunting.

Nonetheless, from the perspective of an accomplished 31-year-old competitor, sitting out while healthy is a bitter pill to swallow — even if he’s getting paid. In a since-deleted Instagram story post close to Thursday’s trade deadline, Wall wrote:

Crazy, just wanna play ball. All a part of God’s plan!

The post finished with an emoji of praying hands. While you can never say never in the NBA, all clues to this point suggest that Wall’s prayer to play may not be answered until the 2022 offseason.

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Report: Lakers declined trading Russell Westbrook to Rockets for John Wall, 2027 first-round pick

The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly could’ve traded Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets but opted not to.

The 2022 NBA trade deadline has come and gone, and the Los Angeles Lakers did not make a single move.

The big name the Lakers could’ve traded was Russell Westbrook. After losing in blowout fashion to the Milwaukee Bucks, reports indicated the team no longer believed winning was not possible with Westbrook alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

Trading Westbrook’s $44 million deal this summer with a $47 million player option next season wouldn’t be easy, but the Houston Rockets provided a way out since John Wall is on a similar contract.

However, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, the Lakers declined trading Westbrook for Wall along with Los Angeles’ 2027 first-round pick:

It’s up to Westbrook and the Lakers to figure out an awkward situation and salvage the season.

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As deadline nears, NBA Twitter pushes for Russell Westbrook-John Wall trade with Rockets, Lakers

As the hours and minutes tick down until Thursday’s trade deadline, NBA Twitter is making its case for the Lakers trading Russell Westbrook and an asset to the Rockets for John Wall.

As the hours and minutes tick down until Thursday’s trade deadline for the 2021-22 season, NBA Twitter is making its case for the Lakers trading Russell Westbrook and an asset to the Rockets for John Wall.

Houston is reportedly open to doing that, should the Lakers sufficiently compensate them with a future first-round draft asset. Without that, the Rockets would likely stick with the status quo, since Westbrook has given no indications that he would accept the type of non-playing role that Wall has unselfishly done with Houston this season.

In addition to the Rockets being open-minded to that outcome, it seems Wall himself is, too. Just check out his Twitter likes, where the five-time All-Star liked a recent comment suggesting that Wall for Westbrook would be a worthwhile move for the Lakers. It should also be noted that Wall is a client of Rich Paul and Klutch Sports, which represents Los Angeles superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

With James having recently turned 37 years old, there’s incentive for the Lakers to maximize whatever prime years he has left. At the moment, Westbrook is clearly struggling to fit in, and the Lakers (26-29) remain below .500 and have lost 10 of their last 15 games. The question is whether that is enough for the Los Angeles front office to give up a future draft asset, which could be valuable given the uncertainty of their franchise’s outlook once James eventually begins to show signs of aging.

The ball is in the Lakers’ court. But if they decide they want it to happen, a deal could come together relatively quickly — since from Houston’s perspective, getting some asset for Wall is better than nothing (since he isn’t playing). While the ultimate answer may not come until Thursday’s 2 p.m. CST deadline, NBA Twitter made its opinions clear in the hours leading up. Scroll on for some of the arguments making the case.

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Podcast: Previewing Thursday’s NBA trade deadline for the Houston Rockets

With a Rockets focus, Wednesday’s trade deadline preview with Jackson Gatlin and Ben DuBose includes final predictions for Christian Wood, Eric Gordon, John Wall, James Harden, and more.

Should they stay, or should they go? As Thursday’s trade deadline approaches for the 2021-22 NBA season, that’s the multi-million-dollar question for the rebuilding Houston Rockets pertaining to key veteran players like big man Christian Wood and guard Eric Gordon.

It’s also the key question for the Nets, since they have to decide whether to keep All-Star guard James Harden or trade him to Philadelphia. The ripple effects of that decision will be felt in Houston, since the Rockets own first-round draft assets from Brooklyn through 2027.

Wednesday night’s episode of the “Locked on Rockets” podcast with host Jackson Gatlin and analyst Ben DuBose breaks down those topics and beyond, including whether a blockbuster John Wall-Russell Westbrook trade remains possible with the struggling Los Angeles Lakers.

Other topics and tidbits include potential trade destinations for Wood and Gordon; which decisions are most important to general manager Rafael Stone; and final predictions on what happens with Harden, Wood, Gordon, Wall, Daniel Theis, David Nwaba, and DJ Augustin.

Wednesday’s “Locked on Rockets” episode can be listened to via Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher and nearly all major podcast distributors. It can also be watched on YouTube (see embed below).

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Kevin O’Connor proposes Rockets, Clippers trade for John Wall

The Ringer’s national NBA insider Kevin O’Connor proposes a deal with John Wall going to the Clippers and Marcus Morris, Serge Ibaka, and Eric Bledsoe coming to Houston.

At some point earlier in the 2021-22 season, the Clippers reportedly expressed “genuine interest” in acquiring five-time NBA All-Star John Wall. Could that potentially lead to a deal between Los Angeles and the Houston Rockets before the Feb. 10 trade deadline?

In his latest column at The Ringer, NBA insider Kevin O’Connor makes the case for a Clippers-Rockets trade involving Eric Bledsoe, Serge Ibaka, and Marcus Morris going to Houston for Wall. He writes:

Bledsoe, Morris, and Ibaka combine to make $43.4M, which makes them a perfect match for Wall’s $44.3M salary. Ibaka and Bledsoe aren’t long for LA. And while Morris is a good player, wouldn’t swapping him for Wall, a five-time All-Star who’s still only 31, be a reasonable gamble?

From Houston’s view, Morris’ contract extends to the 2023-24 season, whereas Wall’s deal does not. However, because it is much cheaper annually, that likely wouldn’t be a concern to general manager Rafael Stone — since Morris can simply be dealt again, if cap room is needed.

At 32 years old, Morris likely wouldn’t be happy in a rebuilding scenario in Houston, anyway. But as long has Morris has any positive trade value around the league — and he’s currently averaging 15.6 points (36.3% on 3-pointers) and 5.1 rebounds while still providing value defensively, so he should — that scenario offers more upside to the Rockets than simply maintaining the status quo non-playing arrangement with Wall.

Thus, it’s almost certainly a deal that Houston would accept, though Stone would likely be canvassing the league for Morris suitors in such a scenario. The question is whether the Clippers are desperate enough to make such a trade, but with Los Angeles still below .500 in early February and Kawhi Leonard potentially on the way back, perhaps that could prompt them to be more aggressive in their deadline decisions.

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John Wall ‘likes’ tweet suggesting trade to Lakers for Russell Westbrook

To no surprise, it appears that John Wall himself is also intrigued by the idea of a trade from Houston to the Los Angeles Lakers, where he would resume playing.

With veteran guard John Wall sitting out games as part of Houston’s rebuilding movement, the Rockets are open-minded to sending him to another NBA destination where he could play. But understandably, it needs to make sense to the team, in terms of both finances and assets.

As the Feb. 10 trade deadline nears, the most plausible move from the perspective of financial logistics is trading Wall to the Los Angeles Lakers for Russell Westbrook. Indeed, the Rockets are reportedly open to doing that, should the Lakers sufficiently compensate them with a future first-round draft asset. (Without that, the Rockets would likely stick with the status quo, since Westbrook has given no indications that he would accept the type of non-playing role that Wall has with Houston.)

In addition to the Rockets being open-minded to that outcome, it seems that Wall himself is, too. Just check out his Twitter likes, where the five-time All-Star liked a recent comment suggesting that Wall for Westbrook would be a worthwhile move for the Lakers. It should also be noted that Wall is a client of Rich Paul and Klutch Sports, which represents Los Angeles superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, as well.

With James having recently turned 37 years old, there’s a clear incentive for the Lakers to maximize whatever prime years he has left.

Of course, even if the Rockets and Wall want that trade to materialize, none of it matters unless the Lakers also want it. But with Los Angeles alternating wins and losses over the past two weeks and hovering at or below .500, it shouldn’t come as a shock if they become a bit more desperate when the calendar turns to February and the deadline nears.

The ball is in the Lakers’ court, but if they decide they want it to happen, it sounds as if a deal could come together relatively quickly.

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Final 2022 NBA All-Star votes for the Houston Rockets

Four NBA players voted reserve guard DJ Augustin as an All-Star, while John Wall — who has yet to play this season — also had a player vote. Here’s a rundown of how all Rockets fared.

Entering Friday, the Rockets (14-34) possessed the worst record in the Western Conference. Thus, in a rebuilding season, it should come as no surprise that Houston’s young squad will not have a player representative at the 2022 NBA All-Star Game.

Nonetheless, in a hybrid format weighting votes from fans, a media panel, and players, the Rockets did still have many players receiving votes. Fans accounted for 50 percent of the vote to determine the starters, which were announced Thursday, while players and media accounted for 25 percent each. Reserves will be named next week.

Though no Houston player received votes from the media panel, it’s become clear over the years of this voting process that many fans and players will go by personal favorites, rather than true basketball merit. Even John Wall, who has not played in a single game this season as part of a mutual decision, received votes from fans and even a player!

Here’s a rundown of how each Houston player fared in regards to votes from fans and players (none received any from media).

Former Griz exec, Athletic analyst John Hollinger, Athletic writer Jay King offer Celtics 2022 offseason TPE, free agency targets

The duo shifts focus beyond the deadline for Boston in a recent article.

While there is plenty of reporting about trade rumbles at this time of the season — just a few weeks ahead of the 2022 deadline for teams to exchange players with each other — there is also no shortage of speculation about which players ought to be dealt to which teams, too.

And given the Boston Celtics are widely seen to be among the NBA’s most active franchises on the 2022 NBA trade market, it should not surprise to see plenty of such speculation. Some are even extending the window of projection beyond the deadline to include potential offseason moves.

Not all such prognostication is created equal, however, and those with an intimate knowledge of how front offices run ought to be considered a little more closely.

Trade rumor rankings: James Harden, Russell Westbrook and more

HoopsHype ranks the 10 players who have appeared most in trade rumors over the past seven days, headlined by James Harden.

We are hitting the homestretch of the portion of the NBA season where players can be dealt, with the trade deadline coming on Feb. 10, under two weeks away.

As such, today, we are ranking another 10 players who have made the most appearances on our Trade Rumors Page over the past week.

Without time to waste, let’s jump right in.

Report: Lakers unwilling to trade 2027 first-round pick in Russell Westbrook-John Wall swap

The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly are unwilling to part with the 2027 first-round pick in a Russell Westbrook-John Wall swap.

Recent reports have indicated the Houston Rockets could offer the Los Angeles Lakers a way out of Russell Westbrook’s contract.

Longtime NBA insider Marc Stein said the Rockets would take Westbrook for John Wall, but the Lakers would need to send their 2027 first-round pick for the deal to go through. Otherwise, the deal will not happen.

But in Stein’s latest newsletter (paid subscription), the Lakers are not willing to make that happen:

The Lakers, though, appear determined to stick with Westbrook through at least the rest of the season, which means holding onto their 2027 first-round draft pick for other potential trade opportunities.

League sources say that the Lakers, presented with an unexpected pathway to abort their Westbrook experiment by trading the NBA’s 2017 Most Valuable Player back to the Rockets in exchange for former All-Star John Wall, are unwilling to attach the 2027 first-rounder to make the deal happen.

Stein listed the reasons the Lakers wouldn’t include it, according to sources: Wall doesn’t guarantee a higher ceiling for L.A, and the organization doesn’t want to pay a premium to admit the Westbrook move was a mistake. Los Angeles also hopes Westbrook finds a new gear late in the season as he did last year with the Washington Wizards.

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