After agreeing to a buyout with the Houston Rockets, guard John Wall is planning to sign a free-agent deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, according to ESPN.
Wall was due $47.4 million from the Rockets after exercising the player option for the final year of his contract, but reportedly has agreed to take $6.5 million less to become a free agent and clears the path to join the Clippers.
The Rockets were hoping to reach an agreement with Wall prior to the start of free agency on Thursday to maximize his options to find a new team to play for.
Wall, 31, and the Rockets mutually agreed that Wall didn’t play last season during the early stages of their rebuild last season, as Houston prioritized the development of their young guard Kevin Porter Jr. and Jalen Green.
Wall averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists in 40 games for the Rockets in 2020-21 and showed that he could still perform at a high-level in the NBA after missing the previous season and a half because of heel surgery and a torn Achilles tendon.
Back in December 2020, Wall was traded to the Rockets by the Washington Wizards, where he spent the first 11 years of his career after they selected him with the 1st overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, for Russell Westbrook.
Wall now joins a Clippers team looking to get back on track next season as Kawhi Leonard is making his return after missing the 2021-2022 season while recovering from a partially torn ACL in his right knee.
