NBA Rumors: John Wall Buyout Ever Closer; 3 Teams Interested

"Rumbles have finally begun to circulate about (John) Wall resurfacing as an active player next season." That's the word from NBA Insider Marc Stein, as we get ever closer to a John Wall buyout in Houston.

"It is still unclear," wrote Stein, how much of that ($47M) salary he would have to surrender in buyout talks to convince the Rockets to let him become a free agent. The latest Wall-related scuttle does, however, suggest that a pathway for the sides to get there is at last materializing."

The Rockets will make a last-ditch attempt to trade Wall first, but with that being almost a non-starter given his salary, the buyout option is finally becoming a reality.

There’s been ‘serious murmurs’ about John Wall successfully negotiating a buyout with the Rockets, per @TheSteinLine

“Interest in Wall from the Clippers and Heat, if he can finally make his way onto the open market, has been mentioned for months.”

(Via https://t.co/kaswDydy7M) pic.twitter.com/hMjsnt6vVf

— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) June 26, 2022

Stein says the Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Lakers (if they don't land Kyrie Irving) would have interest in signing Wall on the open market.  

The 31-year-old point guard sat out the entire 2021-22 season, as he refused to accept a limited backup role behind the Rockets' young starting backcourt of Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. 

Kelly Iko of The Athletic confirms the impending breakup of the Rockets and Wall, by writing today that "both sides (are) expected to meet this week with Wall’s hope of a resolution — a trade or, more likely, a buyout — by the June 30 start of free agency."

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