In his first public comments since joining the Clippers as a free agent, John Wall said he’s looking forward to playing on such a talented roster, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN relays.
“I don’t have to do it every night, I don’t have to be Batman every night for us to win,” Wall said on Saturday at the Las Vegas Summer League. “That’s the ultimate goal for me is [at] this part of my career, I don’t want to have to be the Batman every night to try to win. On our team that we have, I think anyone can be Batman.”
Wall also said he never seriously considered joining another team besides the Clippers, according to Youngmisuk.
“I really didn’t care about all the other teams,” Wall said of his other potential suitors. “The other teams are great, and I’m glad teams wanted to come after me, but I kind of looked at the picture of like, where can I go [where] I don’t have to be the John Wall from 2016 and have to carry the load and do all those [things] and have the pressure on me. I think [LA] was missing a piece of having a point guard, and it’s a great situation for me to be there.”
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Recruitment calls from Stephen Curry and Draymond Green helped Donte DiVincenzo land on the Warriors as his free agent destination, writes Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area. “Once I had the conversation with Steph and Draymond, everything kind of slowed down for me a little bit because I got away from the numbers, the dollar signs and everything,” DiVincenzo said. “I was more so focused on what is best for Donte and what is best for me going forward. With that culture and environment, it’s something that I want to be a part of and it’s something of who I am. I don’t have to change who I am. I can just totally fit in and become a Warrior.” DiVincenzo signed a two-year deal with Golden State with a player option in the second season. He reportedly had offers for more money, but the ability to join a contender and possibly build up his value next season appealed to the 25-year-old.
- Lakers head coach Darvin Ham recently expressed confidence in his coaching staff’s ability to get the most out of the team’s newly-signed free agents, per Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group. “There’s various circumstances as to why people have a dip in shooting,” Ham said. “Sometimes it’s injury-related, sometimes it’s minutes, who you’re out on the floor with, how many touches. So only thing we’re worried about is what we’re doing going forward, and we feel we’ve got a good group – a good young group of free agents that’s gonna come in and make an impact.” The Lakers have added Lonnie Walker, Troy Brown Jr., Juan Toscano-Anderson, Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant thus far in free agency, prioritizing youth and athleticism over older veterans.
- Suns big man Dario Saric, who missed the entire 2021/22 season after suffering a torn right ACL in the 2021 Finals and underwent arthroscopic surgery in May to repair a torn meniscus in the same knee, recently gave a positive update on his status, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Saric just started doing contact work with coaches and hopes to play a couple of games with the Croatian national team prior to training camp. “I’m feeling good, I’m feeling really good,” said Saric. “I’m moving better, moving faster. I was one year out of basketball. I’ve had time to settle my mind to really dive into this extra positive. Working to be as best as I can.”