NBA Player Unloaded On ‘Trash’ Rockets 3 Weeks Ago — The Same Team That Just Acquired Him in a Trade
John Wall was traded to the Houston Rockets on Thursday, but just three weeks ago he blasted the organization and called the team “trash.”
Wall was on the Run Your Race podcast on January 17th when hosts Theo Pinson and AJ Richardson asked him about his short tenure with the Rockets. He played in only one season with the organization due to injuries and a mutual decision not to play in the 2021-2022 season. In June 2022, the Rockets bought Wall out of his contract, and he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. When he was asked about when the Washinton Wizards traded him to Houston, he did not appreciate his time there.
“Trash, beyond trash,” Wall said. “I’m going there thinking James (Harden) going to be there once I got traded, but he already wants out.”
He explained that Harden, who ended up in a trade out of Houston a month after Wall got there, invited him to a party in Atlanta, but Wall did not go since he had just made it to Houston and didn’t want to upset the Rockets’ ownership. The Rockets lost 20 games in a row throughout the 2020-2021 season, but that did not stop his work ethic.
“I was just being a professional,” Wall said. “I always wanted to teach them like, ‘don’t get used to this shit. This is not how the NBA is. It’s just a bad organization right now.'”
The brass of the Rockets told Wall they appreciated how he took younger guys under his wing and taught them how to play in the NBA, and he would get a chance to start the following season. Then head coach Stephen Silas informed Wall that his minutes would be limited.
“I said, I’m not doing it. Either you gon guarantee me some minutes, or I’m not,” said Wall. “But I’m like, ‘let a motherfucker earn his spot.'”
Wall elaborated that Silas only told him what upper management wanted from the star player, so they decided it would be best for Wall not to play for the entire 2021-2022 season.
On Thursday, Wall was traded back to the Rockets from the Clippers as the NBA trade deadline ended at 3:00 pm eastern time. His reaction to the trade must have been the polar opposite of New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, who went crazy on Wednesday night after he found out his former college teammate will join him in the Big Apple.
Watch above via the Run Your Race podcast.
