At one point, John Wall was unsure of when the nightmare would end.
Despite being a part of five All-Star squads, and regardless of his defensive chops earning him an All-Defensive honor, Wall was pushed aside and discarded by the Houston Rockets. After joining their ball club before the start of the 2020-21 NBA season, Wall believed that he would play an enormous role in Houston’s future.
Yet, regardless of Wall’s initial beliefs, Houston’s title chances fell by the wayside as the pieces around him began changing. Ultimately, although Wall would go on to average 20.6 points and 6.9 assists during his first season in Houston, he was shown the door and told to remain home during the 2021-22 league year.
Throughout it all, Wall continued to work tirelessly on his craft. Now, after agreeing to a buyout with Houston and inking his name on the dotted line with the LA Clippers on a two-year deal worth $13.2 million, the former multiple-time All-Star is anxious to get back to work.
“I’m extremely excited,” said Wall during a quick interview with TMZ Sports.
John Wall finds himself in a great position
Wall, now 31, will join a star-studded roster with championship aspirations in LA. In addition to Wall, head coach Ty Lue will also have the services of both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. While the latter failed to compete for the entirety of the year due to a torn ACL, all signs are pointing to the former two-time Defensive Player of the Year returning to LA’s lineup without restriction.
This past season, despite dealing with an injury-depleted roster, Lue led his hobbled ball club to 42 victories before falling just short in the play-in round with a playoff berth on the line.
Long before Wall decided that it would be in his best interest to join the Clippers for the foreseeable future, LA was considered amongst the league’s title favorites heading into the 2022-23 season.
When asked about LA’s lofty goals, Wall refrained from piling on the pressure. Instead, while he’s fully aware that his new team has extremely high expectations, Wall simply expressed gratitude to LA for taking a chance on him.
“I’m just ready to play basketball, that’s it.”