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The Houston Rockets, following their decision to rebuild, requested that John Wall sit out this NBA season. Not everyone has met such luck, and former NBA player Quentin Richardson pointed that out.
In the past three seasons, Wall has played in only 40 games. He missed the entire 2019-20 season due to injury and played those games in his first stint with the Rockets.
He did not play last season despite being healthy, however. The franchise chose to compete with their younger squad, requesting that the veteran ride the bench.
While Wall was included in several trade rumors throughout the season, none materialized. Even with no likelihood of taking the court, the combo guard has opted into his $47.3 million player option for next season.
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On the "Pat McAfee Show," the issue was discussed as the host sought to understand the situation. Richardson believes that it is not Wall's fault, seeing as he did not request to not be an active member.
"I don't think they are known for that," Richardson said. "I think it's just the situation. This is, why when I hear fans and different people trying to be critical to pro athletes, it's like this is a prime situation.
"If the shoe was on the other foot, and he was unhappy, and he's like, 'Hey, I wanna be away from the team,' they'll be telling him he's a team killer. But, like, he amicably agreed. They said, ' Hey, we don't want you around, go home and be away.
"But if the shoe is on the other foot, they would kill him. 'They pay you $47 million,' they would be killing him. This is just how it goes. That's why I feel like he's in a great situation where we was hurting all of those teams but he's getting paid a ton of money no matter what happens. So, he does win in that situation, but it's like everybody isn't that fortunate."
The Houston Rockets are reportedly looking to buy John Wall out of his contract
It has been reported that the Rockets are looking to buy Wall out of his $47 million contract. It is evident that the team is not looking to use him in any capacity and would likely love to free up personnel space.
Although Wall has missed an entire season, teams are reportedly looking to swoop in and secure his services. The Boston Celtics and LA Lakers are among the front-runners looking to acquire Wall.
The 31-year-old is an elite two-way guard. The last time he played a full season, he averaged 23.1 points, 10.7 assists (second in the league), 4.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals (league-best).
In 2020-21, he averaged 20.6 ppg and 6.9 rpg on 40.4% shooting.
Meanwhile, the Rockets are looking to go younger. A few days ago, they traded Christian Wood to the Dallas Mavericks for the 26th pick in the draft and a few players. Later Thursday night, they will pick third in the draft.
