John Wall could sign with the Clippers if he enters free agency.
The Los Angeles Clippers will be looking for an upgrade at point guard this offseason, and while trading Marcus Morris and his $16.3 million salary is one way to accomplish that, the front office is also keeping tabs on Houston Rockets guard John Wall, according to a report from Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report on Thursday:
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.
Wall, a five-time All-Star, hasn’t suited up for the Rockets since April 2021 due to a disagreement with the front office about his role on a team that made player development its No. 1 priority. In the season before he decided to sit out, Wall averaged 20.6 points, 6.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game in 40 appearances.
If Wall is willing to come to Los Angeles without the promise of a starting job, then the Clippers would be wise to see if he can still contribute to a winning team. After all, he’s four years removed from being an All-Star and now three years removed from his devastating Achilles injury. Signing Wall to what would likely be a veteran’s minimum deal in free agency would also put less pressure on the Clippers to trade Morris right away.
But if Wall and the agency he’s represented by, Klutch Sports, are adamant about him starting, then the might me better off letting Wall sign elsewhere. As talented as Wall is, it would be hard to justify slotting him into the starting five with all of the questions about whether or not he can still compete at a high level. And in the event that he falls out of the rotation, there’s obviously potential for it grow into a bigger problem.
The hope is that whatever decision the Clippers come to with Wall is an informed one and not one based in optimism, because while Wall could be the next Nicolas Batum, he could also be the next, well, John Wall.