Though Houston Rockets general manager Rafael Stone did not rule out recent speculation related to a John Wall contract buyout, he said Monday that he remains optimistic about an eventual trade.
Wall has not played since the 2020-21 season, with Houston choosing in 2021-22 to make Kevin Porter Jr. the full-time starter at point guard. Wall, a five-time All-Star, was reportedly reluctant to accept the type of bench role behind Porter that ultimately went to Dennis Schroder.
Since then, the Rockets have tried to trade Wall, but the enormous size of his contract makes that difficult. However, since Wall will be an expiring contract in 2022-23, that might change the calculus.
