Bradley Beal has a full no-trade clause and the star guard has revealed his demands for waiving it in order to be traded to the Phoenix Suns.
After weeks, months and years of Bradley Beal trade rumors, a deal might finally be starting to materialize. And the Washington Wizards reportedly have two major suitors for such a deal in the Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat.
According to NBA insider Chris Hanyes, Bradley Beal has revealed the terms under which he would waive his no-trade clause for a trade to the Suns. Beal has complete control over the situation due to that clause. As such, his preference is that the package be headlined by Chris Paul and Landry Shamet and would not include former No. 1 pick DeAndre Ayton.
NBA Trade Rumors: Bradley Beal doesn’t want DeAndre Ayton in Suns trade
The Suns’ only main way of improving their depth after trading for Bradley Beal would be trading Ayton theerafter. This would be a little tough as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski has stated that the Ayton market is “lean”. It has also been noted that Ayton has the power of veto over any trade that he doesn’t like due to the terms of the CBA (signed an offer sheet, which allows veto power for a year).
With the Suns having limited options to improve the roster after a potential Beal trade, that makes it a bad move. Phoenix needs depth, not another star, much less an injury-prone star about to turn 30 years old.
This situation would be very similar to Kevin Durant’s time in Brooklyn after they traded for James Harden. Sure, Beal isn’t as problematic as a Kyrie Irving, but banking solely on injury-prone players (Durant has dealt with his share of ailments in addition to Beal) is not wise.
All of this is not even considering that the Suns would be deep in the luxury tax after trading for Beal too, which would create huge penalties for them in the future.
Meanwhile, adding depth by reworking the current roster could work much better. Trading Ayton for 50 cents on the dollar, waiving and stretching Paul to earn a mid-level exception, and filling out the rest of the lineup — perhaps something that includes bringing Chris Paul back on the miniumu — and the team is a Top 5 club in the NBA for the next 2-3 years.
Trading for Beal, on the other hand, is taking on a major risk with an unproven formula for roster-buidling.