Houston Rockets guard John Wall exercised his $47.4 million player option for the 2022-23 season, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Rockets will continue to seek trade scenarios in the coming weeks, but are expected to work with Wall on a contract buyout if a swap can’t be found, sources said.
Wall, 31, arrived in Houston via a trade with Washington that sent Russell Westbrook to the Wizards prior to the 2020-21 season. After missing the entire 2019-20 season with an Achilles tear, Wall started 40 games for the Rockets during 2020-21 and averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists. The Rockets and Wall agreed to shut him down late in the season, trying to protect his body and trade value.
The Rockets’ commitment to building around a backcourt of 2021 No. 2 overall pick Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. left Wall without a starting job, and with the decision that a bench role for him wouldn’t be beneficial to either party, both sides agreed that he would sit out the 2021-22 season as Houston worked on finding a trade partner.
Wall, a five-time All-Star, was limited to 113 games over the three seasons he played from 2017-18 to 2020-21 due to a series of significant injuries, including the Achilles tear.