Following what has been the biggest trade of an offseason that just began, the Phoenix Suns and their roster appear to be in no-man land. They are poorly constructed from the bottom up, and the Suns’ fanbase, just like the NBA community, is confused about the team’s overall direction.
Phoenix could do right by their franchise great Devin Booker and offer him a max contract extension, but that would mean the front office is still looking to compete. The question here is, how can they do so with four above-average-elite wings in the same rotation?
Booker has played point guard in the past, which is fair, but Phoenix still has Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, and Bradley Beal to worry about. Regarding Beal, they cannot do much, as he has a no-trade clause on his contract that was granted to him by the Washington Wizards when he signed for a five-year, $252 million max in 2022.
That said, the LA Clippers can make the most of this situation and make a painful move that may hurt right now but will pay off dividends once Beal’s contract is over and the next era in LA hits the road.
The LA Clippers could make a reasonable offer to Phoenix regarding Bradley Beal, easing his contract off their hands
With the highest yet most harmful salary on the team, the Phoenix Suns’ front office has been searching for a way to get rid of Bradley Beal for quite some time. He is solid when he plays, but all in all, the Washington Wizards did not have their thinking cap on when they sent him a max-check that also included a no-trade clause.
This clause means Beal would have to sign off on a trade to the LA Clippers, but he would likely do so with a bigger role waiting on him off the bench. The minutes would be there, and the ball would be in his hands, where the three-time All-Star could run the floor and score at free will without the head coach benching him or taking his shots away.
At 31, Beal still averaged 17.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 32.1 minutes. This indicates that his value remains intact and that the reasons for his avoidance are primarily due to his contract and availability.
Nonetheless, if the Clippers were willing to take on Beal, they could ask Phoenix to include the tenth pick they recently received in the trade involving Kevin Durant. Additionally, LA could also move Drew Eubanks and Kobe Brown, two reserves on Tyronn Lue’s second unit. These two would be salary fillers next to Norman Powell and Bogdan Bogdanović, the heart and soul of Lawrence Frank’s offer.