Why hurt ourselves by trading him at all? We won't be ready to contend in the next two years so play him or sit him and be free and clear of the contract when it expires.
No joke....... Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr, Josh Christopher and possibly Daishen Nix in the backcourt........ Alperen Sengun, Christian Wood, Kenyon Martin Jr,, Jae'Sean Tate and Usman Garuba... in the front court. I don't think we will win a lot of games, but that is a lot of young and interesting players to watch play... It's only a matter of time before Gordon is moved as well.
Iko is clueless, he should be traded alongside Wall and Silas to some loser franchise...I dont care if we need to give up a couple of picks just to get rid of their expertise....basketball iq should be a lot higher around these parts afterwards
It is possible that the Rockets do not want the headache, or that they feel that they can turn some of the pieces from the Clippers into some assets down the road. I don't believe the Rockets when they say they will not discuss a buyout. If he was willing to give back 20-25% of his salary in a buyout, I think the Rockets would likely do it.... the only sticking point is free agency next year. The Rockets may think they can sign a free agent they really like and can move Wall with an asset easily next off season.... I think that is overly optimistic though.
The entire point of trading Wall is so we can start KPJ. Now we should start Green over Gordon because he seems to love the 6th man role that is if we cant trade him.
Wall is not going to get bought out nor he is going to decline that player option. I mean, I don't blame him because that ~$90 is potentially his last big pay day. After that contract runs its course he's going to be playing for the vet minimum or, at best, the MLE if things align perfectly. For the Rockets, Fertitta is not going to pay a player tens of millions of dollars to go away and not contribute anything to the team. It definitely puts Stone in a difficult position but that's a problem he'll have to figure out.
I don't see how this isn't an absolute win-win for both the Rockets and Wall here. It's very clearly coordinated between the team and the agent, removes any kind of distraction during training camp, and unifies the locker room behind guys FYI this is not correct on multiple fronts. First of all, trade kickers may only be exercised the first time a player is traded during a contract (for sign-and-trades, the first "trade" is not included). Obviously Wall has already been traded once during his current contract. Secondly, a trade bonus may not cause a player's yearly salary to exceed the maximum eligible salary in the year it is applied. For 2021, a 10+ year vet max starts at $39,344,900. Since Wall is already at $44,310,840, exceeding the max, the bonus would be automatically waived in any transaction, which it was upon his trade to Houston in 2020. If John is willing to basically just rehab and be around the team without demanding minutes, that is an absolute win for both sides. Wall should be motivated to protect his own perceived value for his next contract. The worst thing for him is to be in Blake Griffin's position where he goes out there next year and gets benched for KPJ/Green, and stories start coming up where the young guns are grumbling about shots, minutes, and leadership of the locker-room. It's the difference between him being forever chained to minimum contracts as a washed up role player, or being more in the Kemba Walker/Derrick Rose tier where he can get something like the mid-level exception on his next deal. Other teams signing him after a buyout can then dream on his potential impact, rather than have their scouts saying he's finished based on his play in a non-ideal situation. This whole thing seems very coordinated on both sides, and the Rockets have shown that they do well by their former players in being up-front with them and making sure they land in good situations. I do think that this is a marked difference between Morey and Stone so far; Morey really pissed off agents and players by constantly churning the roster and trying to gather value in every transaction, Stone seems like he's building a much better reputation around the league in not needing to win every trade. We'll see if it pays off in 2023 free agency.
I know a lot of people hate Wall, but I don't think we could have asked any more of him. He's not the same player he was, and we knew that when we acquired him. He got traded into a bad situation, on a team in turmoil with its star player demanding out and an oft-injured roster in a total rebuild. Throughout the season, he played hard, didn't complain, didn't criticize the front office, or his teammates or coaches. His best friend was cut (Cousins) and he didn't gripe over it. He even played back to backs when he didn't have to. Even with rumors of him being shut down, he continued to play. His game is not the same. He's a ballhog and shoots too much. His first step is not lost, but its slower. I get all that. But in an era of diva stars and malcontent players, Wall's been great.
I think we need a Big man. Ben Simmons is my first choice in this particular situation. Ben will have to play 4 or 5 though. KAT might be possible too in a 3 team trade. We have an opportunity to speed up the rebuild to at least be a playoff team.
.....yet. I hear his retirement plans aren't set in stone, he could always pick up a new and exciting hobby.
Of course it is coordinated, it is in the best interest of the Rockets for it to be coordinated. It doesn't mean that Wall didn't say "I am not playing".... once that is known it is up to the Rockets to decide how to handle it, and handling it how they are in smart and they also will avoid the media storm had they not addressed it. Thank you, I was under the impression that Wall didn't exercise his trade kicker last time and as result retained that right. What choice did either side realistically have? What benefit do the Rockets get forcing him to play? There is none. Yes, the Rockets PR keeps pushing the narrative of doing right by the players.... but have they really sacrificed anything? They picked up Tate's option when they were going to anyway, and it is for a small amount of money. They dealt Harden to the Nets because the Nets had the best offer.... do you think that Cousins feels the Rockets did him right? Thus far, the Rockets have largely done what is in the best interest of the Rockets (as they should) and have tried to package it as doing right by the players. I also fail to see how Stone isn't trying to gather value or win every trade.... that is his job as a GM. This has all been more PR BS from the Rockets organization..... look at what they ACTUALLY do and what their motivations are. The Rockets will do well in free agency in large part based on how good they are, how much money they offer and who the other suitors are...... it isn't going to be because the Rockets exercised the option for Tate early or dealt Tucker to the Bucks (who wanted Tucker anyway).
