The Houston Rockets have traded away Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards in exchange for John Wall and a 2023 lottery-protected pick. Rumors were spiraling as it seemed that both point guards wanted a change of scenery. Wall and Westbrook have an average salary upwards of $42 million and $41 million respectively. Not many teams around the league could acquire either player with large contracts like these.
Wall and Westbrook will be leaving their teams to play alongside a premier shooting guard. John Wall will have an opportunity to play with James Harden who has three consecutive scoring titles, and Westbrook will join Bradley Beal coming off a career-high average in points (30.5).
Both point guards will have a star to help carry the load but will the Rockets or Wizards be any better from years prior?
John Wall to the Houston Rockets
Wall is coming off an Achilles injury after having surgery on it and then later ruptured his Achilles by falling at home. Wall hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since December of 2018 and his health is a huge concern.
Wall will be joining the Rockets, a team that was built around James Harden. Houston is a team that relies on isolation and a high volume of threes. Wall isn’t the type of player to flourish in this game plan. He’s at his best when he’s running the pick n’ roll and getting out in transition. Harden doesn’t push the pace often coming off of a defensive rebound or a steal. He typically slows down the tempo so he can go to work on the three-point line. Chris Paul and Westbrook both increased the tempo during their time in Houston but their styles clashed with Harden.
Without being a three-point threat, Wall can’t be as effective as CP3 was playing beside Harden. It’s similar to Westbrook on the Rockets this past season, the talent was there but the glove didn’t fit.
With injury being a concern and being a bad fit, Wall doesn’t make Houston a stronger team than last year. They’ll perform well in the regular season but they won’t reach the conference finals unless a star player is hurt on the opposing team. The western conference continues to be deep and the Rockets’ chances towards an NBA championship doesn’t improve after landing Wall.
Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards
Looking back at the last three seasons (2014-17) that John Wall was healthy for the most part, the Wizards were 46-36, 41-41, and 49-33. Washington was eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semis twice during that three-year span. It will be Russell Westbrook’s first time playing in the east where the latter half of the standings is weak competition.
Westbrook and Wall are similar with the ability to finish around the rim, excel in transition, and can rack up huge assist totals. However, Westbrook tends to lose control in games with poor shot selection or a late turnover. Westbrook isn’t always a player that you want in crunch time because he could cost you a game especially in the playoffs.
It’s hard to say that Westbrook coming to Washington makes them a better team compared to the years that Wall was healthy because they are similar players. On top of that, Beal has been streaky during the playoffs which is a bad combination to Westbrook’s late-game meltdowns.
Neither team improves after this trade due to the closeness in Wall and Westbrook’s game. Although, the Wizards have more upside because they have the healthier point guard and that they play in the east.
Photos: SLAM, NBA.com
I guess we will have to see how it goes when the games start.