After agreeing to the acquisition with the Houston Rockets, goalkeeper John Wall It plans to sign a free agent agreement with the Los Angeles Clippers, sources told ESPN on Monday.
A source told ESPN that Wall, who was owed $47.4 million from the Rockets after exercising the player option for the final year of his contract, agreed to take $6.5 million less to become a free agent. That’s roughly the amount of the mid-level taxpayer exemption, which Wall can get once he’s able to negotiate a deal with the Clippers.
Sources said the Rockets wanted to reach an agreement with Wall before the free agency began Thursday to maximize his options in selecting his next team.
The Rockets and Wall, 31, reached a mutual decision not to play for Houston last season in the early stages of rebuilding. Instead, rockets prioritized the development of youth guards Kevin Porter Jr. And the Galen GreenSo Wall didn’t fit into the franchise plans despite his $44.3 million salary.
Wall averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists in 40 games for the Rockets in the 2020-21 season, proving that he can still perform at a high level after missing a season and a half last season with heel surgery and an Achilles tendon rupture. He spent parts of last season with the Rockets, participated in drills and sat on the bench during games, and trained alone in Miami the rest of the time.
Wall traded with Houston along with a future first-round pick Russell Westbrook in December 2020 after spending the first 11 years of his career with the Washington Wizards, which picked him first in the 2010 draft. The Rockets considered themselves contenders at the time, but the franchise drastically changed directions when it was a former MVP James Harden Forced trade early in the 2020-21 season.
Wall, who has a career average of 19.1 points and 9.1 assists, will fill the Clippers’ need for a playmaker on a team with championship aspirations, with Kohi Leonard He returned after missing the 2021-22 season while recovering from a partial anterior cruciate ligament tear in his right knee. Reggie Jackson She averaged 16.8 points and 4.8 assists as the Los Angeles starting point guard last season, when the Clippers went 42-40 and were eliminated in game play.
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