A strange trade spotted amid a wild NBA trade deadline day Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Clippers.
Houston traded Eric Gordon and three second-round picks to Los Angeles in exchange for John Wall, Danny Green, and a pick swap. memphis grizzlies Also involved in the trade was Luke Kennard from the Clippers.
It may sound like a normal tradeoff, but just last week, Wall ripped into the Rockets organization on the “Run Your Race” podcast in which he didn’t hold back his feelings about the team.
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John Wall of the Houston Rockets is shown during the third quarter against the Indiana Pacers on April 14, 2021 in Houston. (Carmen Mandet/Pool Photo via AP)
“Trash. Beyond trash,” he said.
WARNING: THE VIDEO BELOW CONTAINS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
Wall detailed his time in Houston, which ultimately ended in a buyout earlier this season. It has been well documented that Wall, after losing his mother, dealt with an Achilles injury and then covid-19 pandemic Strike. All of that caused Wall to miss the 2019-2020 season, then he was traded to the Rockets.
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That marriage didn’t start off on the right foot as James Harden, with whom Wall thought he would be paired, already wanted to move on.
“He already wants out. When I landed [in Houston], I’m like, ‘What’s up? I’m about to get off Going to my conference. He’s like, ‘I’m going to Atlanta for Lil Baby’s birthday.'”
Harden was eventually traded to the Brooklyn Nets, and Wall soon became the veteran who had to mentor a very young Rockets squad. But Wall knew what was happening: Houston was tanking.
John Wall of the Houston Rockets warms up before the game against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena on December 13, 2021 in Atlanta. (Adam Hegy / NBAE via Getty Images)
He said, “Got out there, did my job and played. We lost 20 matches in a row. We were trying to lose intentionally.”
“That’s how our starting lineup was: me, David Navaba, J’Sean Tate, Justin Payton and whoever. I’m like, ‘Who the f— can I win a game with this s—?’ “
Wall said he took on the role of mentor, telling his teammates the cold, hard truth about the Rockets compared to the rest of the NBA.
“Me, I was just being a professional,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to teach them like, ‘Don’t get used to this s—. That’s not the NBA way. It’s a bad organization right now. They’ve got to fix some s— around.’ I always talk to Jalen Green, Kevin Porter [Jr.], I would like, ‘Don’t reconcile with this defeat. That’s not how the league is. But at the same time, I had to tell them like, ‘With whatever you’re all running out here with, you go to any other team, you’ll be out of the f—ing league. You won’t play.'”
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Wall finished his first season with the Rockets averaging 20.6 points, 6.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds in 40 games. However, the Rockets were the league’s worst team in 2020–2021, finishing with a 17–55 record. He ultimately received the second overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, with Green landing it.
But once new Rockets GM Raphael Stone came in for Daryl Morey, who stepped down in October 2020, Wall said he was asked to come off the bench last season.
He didn’t like it much.
John Wall of the Houston Rockets looks on during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans on December 5, 2021 in Houston. (Alex Birens de Haan / Getty Images)
“‘He wants you to play 10-15 minutes a game – sometimes don’t play,'” Wall was told. “I said I’m not doing it. Either you’re going to guarantee me a few minutes or I’m not [playing],
Wall did just that. He sat out the entire season. He said the Rockets treated him like an outcast.
“They didn’t want me around. I had to work at 7 in the morning like I was a newbie. I had to work before they got there.”
Wall eventually returned to Miami to be around his children and continued training before reaching his deal with Houston. He signed with the Clippers and came off the bench in 34 games, averaging 11.4 points, 5.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds per contest.
john wall (Jordan Johnson / NBAE via Getty Images / File)
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And just as he left them, the Rockets are still in last place in the Western Conference with a 13-42 record.
Wall’s second stint with the Rockets will certainly be interesting to watch.