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The Houston Rockets like to end practices with one-on-one drills led by assistant coach John Lucas. It's been a tradition dating back to training camp in Galveston and the media has been allowed in to watch. The drills are very competitive and there's a lot of trash talk so it's actually a pretty entertaining set up as opposed to traditional shootarounds. At Wednesday's, the media was treated to a playful one-on-one battle between veteran guard John Wall and rookie Jalen Green.
It doesn't take a genius to guess how that might've ended.
John Wall getting some work in with Jalen Green after practice. pic.twitter.com/l77ov0EJKJ
— Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) October 27, 2021
“Hey, we're going to run it back again,” said Jalen Green walking off the the court after his defeat.
“I aint even 70 percent yet,” replied John Wall. “You're 100 percent. I'm not.”
For someone who hasn't played regulation basketball this season, Wall looked pretty spry. There's obviously a difference between practice shape and game shape, but if Wall is a step behind the rest of the group, it was hard to tell. Most of Green's makes in the one-on-one came off jumpers, whereas Wall won with attacks to the basket.
“He's still confident as hell,” said Green, smiling and looking back at Wall on the court. “We're good though. I'll get him back.”
The best way to describe the situation with Wall and the Rockets is unusual, but not at all awkward. It's unusual, because normally a player in his situation opts to be away from the team while they find a new destination. However, as most know, Wall has chosen to be with the team and he's not just clocking in and clocking out. Wall is vocal with the young players, he talks on the bench constantly, and he's trying his best to put the team in the best situation he possibly can just short of playing.
“Yeah that's like my big bro,” said Green on his relationship with Wall. “He gives me a bunch of advice. When we're at the crib, we watch film and stuff together. We break stuff down and watch games.”
Jalen Green had touched on their relationship before, but nobody knew that it was this extensive until today. Wall has chosen to be a mentor figure and Green has embraced his tutelage. It may take a while for the organization to find a trade partner for Wall considering there's over $90 million in salary remaining on his deal.
It's possible he knew this going into the season and that's why he's made himself comfortable in the locker room. The Rockets proved last year that they can stomach an awkward situation and there's no incentive for them to rush a trade with Wall
“It's good to have a big bro like that,” said Jalen Green. “He's been in the league for so long. He has a lot of knowledge on and off the court.”
