The Phoenix Suns are finalizing a deal to acquire All-Star shooting guard Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards in exchange for veteran point guard Chris Paul, shooting guard Landry Shamet and multiple second-round draft picks and pick swaps, The Athletic and ESPN reported yesterday.
The Suns — who had no first-round picks available to move in a trade — nevertheless managed to land Beal to pair with Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton.
Over the weekend, reports indicated the Beal sweepstakes were down to the Suns and the Miami Heat. Beal, who has long stood firm about wanting to make things work in Washington, has to waive the NBA’s only no-trade clause in order to approve the deal.
Beal, who turns 30 this month, played in just 50 games (all starts) last season. He averaged 23.2 points, 5.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game and shot 36.5 percent from 3-point range. Injuries and multiple stays on the COVID-19 reserve list have limited Beal to just 90 games over the past two seasons.
In his 11-year career since the Wizards made him the third overall draft pick out of Florida in 2012, Beal has averaged 22.1 points, 4.3 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game over 695 games (661 starts). He was an All-Star in 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2020-21 and finished second in the NBA in scoring twice (30.5 ppg in 2019-20, 31.3 ppg in 2020-21).
The Suns and new team owner Mat Ishbia fired veteran coach Monty Williams and hired former NBA champion Frank Vogel as his replacement earlier this month.
—Field Level Media
