News broke on Friday that Washington Wizards point guard John Wall has demanded a trade. Wall, a five-time all-star, has not played since December2018 due to injuries.
This surprising development follows an eventful week in the Nation’s Capital. On Monday, General Manager Tommy Sheppard made comments to reporters that his priority during the offseason would be to construct a more competitive roster around Wall’s fellow all-star Bradley Beal. The very next day, Shams Charinia of the Athletic reported that Sheppard explored trade scenarios with the Houston Rockets that would swap Wall for Russell Westbrook.
As Rockets/Wizards talks on Russell Westbrook-for-John Wall stall, Wall has made it clear he wants trade out of Washington to happen, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 21, 2020
Washington has solidified their intention to shift their priorities from Wall to Beal. After Sheppard’s public musings of a new franchise direction, as well as the leaked trade conversations involving Wall, both sides stumbled toward a critical impasse. This was a point-of-no-return for Wall, triggering his trade request.
Trade discussions between Houston and Washington stalled due to the Rockets’ asking price. Sheppard was unwilling to include draft compensation and a young player in the package. This speaks to a sad and uncomfortable reality. Wall’s accolades speak for themself, but he is one of the league’s highest paid players and returning from a torn achilles tendon. At 30 years old, and extremely dependent on his athleticism, he is likely on an inevitable and expensive decline.
What Does a Wall Trade Look Like?
Any deal that would ship Wall to another team would need to include sweeteners in the form of draft assets. Or Washington could be forced to absorb a bad contract in order to match salaries. Both teams could count their losses and call it a day.
At the present moment, no team appears willing to gamble on the former number-one overall pick unless well compensated by Sheppard. Things are going to get ugly.
Wall’s Injury Risk
From 2013-2017, the Wizards made the playoffs three out of four seasons. During that stretch, Wall missed only 12 games. In the three seasons since, that number has skyrocketed to163 games missed to injury with Washington only making the postseason once.
At his peak, Wall was a Tasmanian Devil. In the halfcourt he could accelerate on a dime, collapsing defenses and finding open shooters or spinning into the lane and cramming a left-handed spike. And good luck chasing Wall in transition. He was faster dribbling a ball than most players without one.
What does that look like after an achilles tear? Wall has looked good in recent pick-up games and workouts posted on Twitter, but even Jahlil Okafor resembles an MVP in an open gym. The situation is reminiscent of Chris Paul last season in Oklahoma City. Only difference is Washington will negotiate without an injury-free, feel-good resurgence like Paul.
It seems that with Wall’s medical track record, Sheppard only has a gimpy leg to stand on in a trade.
The Worst Contract in the NBA?
Urban Dictionary defines an ‘albatross’ as “a dead weight or burden one must carry.” Directly below is a picture of John Wall signing his four-year $170 million contract in 2017.
Flashback to that offseason. Wall just made his first all-NBA team and brought Washington to the brink of its first conference final since 1979. A promising season aligned with a climate of uncertainty bewildering star talent and their teams; Paul George and Kyrie Irving demanded trades that summer; Gordon Hayward followed in Kevin Durant’s footsteps by leaving his small-market team in free agency; ‘LeBron to LA’ whispers intensified into league-wide speculation. It was easy to believe that roster stability would thrust Washington over a proverbial hump.
The extension was justifiable at the time. Now, however, Washington is stuck in competitive purgatory. Not good enough to make the playoffs. Not bad enough to guarantee a top-three draft pick. They have been in descent since their 2017 playoff run. And with the fourth-highest paid player in the league this season, something has got to give.
Conclusion
Between a mammoth contract and medical redflags galore, Wall has more to prove this season than at any other point in his career. Unfortunately for Washington, the promise of a redemption story is a difficult tale to trade.
Check out Belly Up’s coverage on the NBA offseason with our recent pieces on the Detroit Pistons and Sacramento Kings. Follow @KyleEdwords and @BellyUpSports on Twitter for more content.
