In one of the NBA trade rumors we’ve been expecting to see for years now, Bradley Beal is reportedly considering asking for a trade from the Washington Wizards before Thursday’s NBA draft.
While he’s staunchly refused to request a trade thus far, rather preferring to try to build a contender in Washington, intel from Beal’s camp via Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer suggests that the time may be coming swiftly.
Bradley Beal is reportedly considering asking for a trade before Thursday’s NBA draft. With NBA trade rumors abuzz, can Beal take these teams to the top?
This quote from Fischer’s piece tells the story:
"“He knows he has to make a decision before the draft,” one source with direct knowledge of Beal’s thinking told Bleacher Report. For the past year, people familiar with Beal’s dedicated relationship to the Wizards have consistently rebuffed the notion he had interest in playing elsewhere. Yet a second source close to Beal, when contacted by B/R, confirmed the situation is now fluid."
A “fluid” situation is far from a guarantee that Beal wants out, but less smoke than this has led to fires when it comes to NBA trade rumors. As the Wizards continue to operate in mediocrity, it stands to reason that he may simply see that there is no future championship in Washington, no Giannis Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee Bucks-type marriage that can lead him to glory.
Of course, if he wants out, there will be no shortage of teams looking to get in on the sweepstakes, including teams he doesn’t have an interest in joining. However, the teams that he is reportedly interested in joining include the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat.
Which of these teams could he help lead to championship glory? Let’s take a look.
NBA trade rumors: Can Bradley Beal take the Golden State Warriors to the top?
The Golden State Warriors are desperate to make a trade for a star, but their ammunition is less than impressive. They have the seventh and 14th picks in this year’s draft, which is certainly reasonable, but are those picks plus Andrew Wiggins (and James Wiseman?) and the remaining two years and $65 million on his contract enough?
They shouldn’t be. Beal is a legitimate star (if not exactly a superstar) in this league, a scoring leader, and he’s worth more to any franchise than Wiggins and these two picks. If Beal WAS added to this roster, however, with Wiggins sent to Washington, the Warriors would have to make do with an undersized defensive backcourt duo of Steph Curry and Beal. They’ll put up points and be better than last season, but it’s going to be hard to compete for championships with their physical limitations.
NBA trade rumors: Can Bradley Beal take the Miami Heat to the top?
The Miami Heat need to make sure they don’t get led astray by an outlier performance in last year’s NBA bubble. They made a valiant run through the Eastern Conference to make it to the NBA Finals, but their showing this past season without the benefit of the bubble, which played to their strengths, revealed that they have a ways to go yet.
The Heat will have cap flexibility if they choose to exercise it, which can help them make a deal happen, but they’re a team that is more than one piece away. They can’t be blamed for going for it if they do, but they’re not a likely championship team just by adding Bradley Beal to a core of Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
NBA trade rumors: Can Bradley Beal take the Boston Celtics to the top?
The Boston Celtics are an intriguing candidate to trade for Bradley Beal. He and Jayson Tatum are longtime friends and playing together would have to be appealing for both of them. The Celtics also don’t really have a proven backcourt lead ball-handler with Kemba Walker now departed, so he could fill that role perfectly.
Marcus Smart would have to go back to Washington, most likely, along with a whole lot of other things. One of those things might have to be Jaylen Brown, which would be a painful price for the Celtics to pay. Would a deal for Bradley Beal that subtracts Brown from the lineup actually make them better? Not necessarily.
NBA trade rumors: Can Bradley Beal take the Philadelphia 76ers to the top?
You know who Bradley Beal could help make a championship team? The Philadelphia 76ers.
Getting a scoring dynamo like Beal would be a world-changing addition for the Sixers, especially if a trade for Ben Simmons is the mechanism by which they make it happen. Removing Simmons and his reluctant shooting from the mix and replacing him with Beal’s scoring prowess would be an automatic improvement, and the Sixers already have a solid defensive squad even without Simmons.
Beal and Joel Embiid could make for one of the best offensive guard/big duos in the NBA, all while Embiid continues to be a legitimate Defensive Player of the Year candidate. If the Sixers can do a deal, they should.