Bradley Beal had Brooklyn on his list before his move to Phoenix

Beal had a well-documented trade saga that led to him being moved to the Phoenix Suns.

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After spending the first 11 seasons of his career with the Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal finally requested a trade away from the team, using his no-trade clause to get him where he wanted, the Phoenix Suns.

Now that he’s settled with the Suns, Beal has given his rationale behind his decision to request the move to Phoenix. The third pick from the 2012 NBA Draft talked to Marc J. Spears of Andscape to give a more of a behind-the-scenes look at the trade. There, it was revealed that Beal considered playing for the Brooklyn Nets.

“So, my initial favorite was Miami. And so, we call Miami… We go, we hear back New York Knicks, Sacramento, Brooklyn a little bit, and then it was Milwaukee and it was one more big team,” Beal revealed to Spears. “And that was kind of one of the most difficult things about every trade and every team. And I respect and love every team, but a lot of them just couldn’t do it because the money was just so high.”

Beal would’ve fit well in Brooklyn

As a go-to scorer at the shooting guard position, Beal would have been a good fit in Brooklyn. Ben Simmons and Mikal Bridges can still play their natural point guard and small forward positions with Beal taking over the 2 spot.

The deal did not materialize because Beal’s contract was too high. For the 2023/24 season, Beal is earning $46,741,590, and this figure is set to rise even further as his player option comes into play in the 2026/27 season, potentially reaching $57,128,610 in salary.

The Nets are still in a good position without Beal

Based on what we've seen so far, the Nets look good enough to compete for a Playoff spot. Coach Jacque Vaughn is focused on optimizing his current roster, a task made more challenging as he continues to refine his strategies for guiding players toward their peak performance.

Coach Vaughn emphasizes the importance of forward momentum, preferring not to dwell on the past season. He remains confident in the abilities of players like Bridges, Simmons, and the entire Nets roster, making the absence of Beal a lesser concern.

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