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Veteran point guard John Wall remains committed to extending his NBA career as he remains a free agent to this point in the offseason.
During ESPN’s broadcast of the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 105-94 Summer League win over the Indiana Pacers, Wall said he’s “not giving up on my dreams of getting back” in the Association. He added he’s willing to accept any role on a prospective team.
Wall hasn’t played an NBA game since Jan. 13, 2023. He spent the 2022-23 season with the Los Angeles Clippers, who later traded him to the Houston Rockets in a three-team deal that also included the Memphis Grizzlies.
Houston then went on to waive him on Feb. 13, 2023, making him a free agent. While he hoped to sign with another franchise to close out the 2022-23 campaign, the buyout market was rough for Wall.
Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report and NBA insider Marc Stein both reported on their #ThisLeague Uncut podcast on Feb. 27, 2023, that a market hadn’t formed for the veteran.
Wall went unsigned for the remainder of the 2022-23 season and the 2023-24 campaign.
The Clippers had been “proactive in seeking trade partners for Wall” leading up to the 2022-23 season’s trade deadline, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times reported Feb. 3 2023. And if they didn’t find a trade partner for him, they were going to consider buying him out.
Wall signed a two-year, $13.3 million contract with the Clippers in July 2022. The second year of the deal was a team option for 2023-24.
The 2010 No. 1 pick appeared in 34 games for the Clippers during the 2022-23 season, playing mostly off the bench for Ty Lue’s squad as Terrance Mann handled starting point guard duties. He averaged 11.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists while shooting 40.8 percent from the floor and 30.3 percent from deep.
Wall was one of the best point guards in the NBA during his nine seasons with the Washington Wizards from 2010-2019 and earned five All-Star selections. He averaged 19 points, 4.3 rebounds and 9.2 assists while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor and 32.4 percent from deep in that span.
However, his career has been derailed by numerous injuries, most notably a ruptured Achilles tendon that sidelined him for the entire 2019-20 season. Since then, he has failed to recapture that success.
Wall was initially traded to the Rockets in December 2020 in the deal that sent Russell Westbrook to the Wizards. During his lone season on the court for the franchise, he averaged 20.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 40 games while shooting 40.4 percent from the floor and 31.7 percent from deep.
The Kentucky product sat out the entire 2021-22 season after he and the Rockets agreed to keep him off the court as they pursued a trade. When nothing came to fruition, the two sides agreed to a contract buyout, making him a free agent.
Wall will be 34 when next year tips off in the fall. It’s perhaps premature to say the door has permanently closed on a return to the NBA, but his hopes of a comeback probably rest squarely on him finding a new home in 2024-25. Should he go two full seasons without playing, that could effectively be the end of his playing career.