Report: Wizards want 12-time All-Star in Bradley Beal trade
The Bradley Beal sweepstakes are heating up. On June 17, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns were the two 'finalists' for a Bradley Beal trade.
On paper, the Heat are better situated to offer an enticing trade package to the Wizards. Miami has a plethora of young talent, most of which are fresh from competing in the NBA Finals.
However, according to Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes, Washington has already laid out their trade demands to the Suns, should they wish to firm up their interest with an offer.
Demanding Chris Paul makes sense for Washington. On one hand, the veteran point guard could be an ideal veteran presence on a rebuilding team. While on the other, Paul's contract is only partially guaranteed this season and becomes fully non-guaranteed in the summer of 2024.
If the Wizards are truly looking to rebuild their roster, making moves to ease their current cap situation ahead of the new CBA is a wise decision. Kristaps Porzingis is another star who could potentially come off the books in the next twelve months too.
The 27-year-old has a player option on his deal for the upcoming season, worth $36M. While Kyle Kuzma is in a similar situation, having a $13M player option for 2023-24, too.
Regardless of whether Porzingis and Kuzma opt out of their current deals, there is a chance the Wizards become a major cap space team in the next 12 months.
With that in mind, Washington could begin amassing bad contracts from teams around the NBA, taking back draft assets or young project players as a 'fee' for doing so. From there, the rebuild will be on, and the Wizards could begin plotting their route back to post-season contention.
Furthermore, Washington wouldn't be hamstrung by multiple inflated contracts limiting their ability to compete in the trade market.
As for Miami and Phoenix, their desire to land Beal is self-explanatory. When healthy, Beal is among the best scorers in the league. Throughout his career, the St. Louis native has played in 695 regular-season games, averaging 22.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.3 assists, shooting 50.3% from two-point range and 37.2% from deep.
After multiple years languishing in NBA purgatory, the Wizards could finally be in a position to get their franchise back on track. Fortunately, neither the Heat nor the Suns' project as bad trade partners.
Although, Phoenix could have a slight edge, as Washington would be sending Beal out West, where they would only need to face him twice each season. Still, that feels like a move a team with hopes of contention would make, not a franchise looking to tear down its very foundations and begin rebuilding from scratch.
Hopefully, the Wizards have learned from previous mistakes and can navigate their new path armed with the experiences of the past half-decade.
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