John Wall has played in just 74 games over the last 4 NBA seasons, and it looks as though he may be falling out of favor with teams across the league. But there are reports that he’ll have the opportunity to continue his career, but it may have to happen overseas.
Australian Team Is Interested In Adding John Wall
Basketball teams in Australia are showing interest in John Wall, per https://t.co/G7o93BSuOz pic.twitter.com/4SzPKhmEBC
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) May 30, 2023
Wall was one of the top point guards in the league during his All-Star seasons with the Washington Wizards. He averaged over 23 points and 10.7 assists in 2016-17, but it has been mostly downhill since then for his career and production. After sitting out the entire 2019-20 season, Wall started 40 games for the Rockets the year after, before sitting out yet again for the entirety of the 2021-22 campaign.
During the most recent season, he played in 34 games for the Clippers and averaged 11.4 points.
There is a good chance that he’ll have some trouble finding a job next year, but that is only in the NBA. According to a report from Australian sports outlet Code Sports, the South East Melbourne Phoenix of Australia’s NBL are interested in acquiring John Wall.
But it isn’t just some random overseas team that is going to potentially come calling. Wall owns a minority stake in the Phoenix franchise, and is reportedly close with majority owner Romi Chaudhary. The team is relatively new, having played their inaugural season in 2019-20.
Could John Wall be heading Down Under pic.twitter.com/5P8DX8Hgao
— theScore (@theScore) May 30, 2023
It would certainly be the second option for Wall, and he will try his hand at finding work in the NBA first. But playing in different league’s across the globe isn’t the shameful demotion it once was. There are guys who carve out nice endings to their basketball careers while playing overseas, and some have done it in the NBL. Some of the players who have participated in the Australian league after their NBA days include Al Harrington, Steve Blake, and Stephen Jackson.
There are guys in other countries as well. DeMarcus Cousins is looking to work his way back into the league and has taken his talents to Puerto Rico for a chance to play in their league, and Dwight Howard is famously playing in the T1 League in Taiwan.
It would certainly be a financial demotion for John Wall. While the potential salary has certainly not been reported, it will be a far cry from the $35 million+ that he made per year from 2019 until 2023.