John Wall responds to critics: ‘Stop saying I’m watching money’
Wizards guard John Wall spoke out on Twitter Friday after a report Thursday indicated he was jealous of other players’ mega-contracts.
Via “Uninterrupted,” Wall shot a minute-long video attempting to clear the air about the rumors. Wall and teammate Bradley Beal recently went public discussing their chemistry issues and attempts to work on solving their on-court problems.
The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor reported Friday, citing a league source “familiar with Wall’s state of mind,” that the All-Star guard has “jealousy issues,” discussing the hefty contracts signed by Rockets guard James Harden and Beal in the past few months.
“I just wanted to clear the air for all these people talking about [how] I’m watching other people’s pockets, I’m not worried about basketball or getting better, thinking about contracts...listen, that doesn’t matter to me. If I produce on the basketball court and take care of myself and [my] image, I’m going to be fine with making money. That’s not why I play the game of basketball.”
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Wall went on to dispel the notion of his frustration about Beal and Harden’s contracts. He signed a deal worth nearly $85 million ahead of the 2014–15 season, before the recent salary cap leaps allowed for greater max salary structure. Harden signed a four-year renegotiated deal that pays him around $29 million annually, and Beal inked a five-year, $127 million max extension this summer.
“Please stop saying I’m watching money,” Wall reiterated. “I’m not.”
“I think a lot of times we have a tendency to dislike each other on the court,” Wall told CSN Mid-Atlantic of Beal this week. “We got to be able to put that to the side. If you miss somebody on one play or don’t have something go right ... as long as you come to each other and talk. If I starting arguing with somebody I’m cool. I’m just playing basketball.”
Wall and Beal have been teammates since Beal was drafted third overall in 2012. Wall, 25 and two years older, was drafted first overall in 2010. His contract expires after the 2018–19 season.
