Insider: Wizards Considered Reunion With Suns Star

Bradley Beal trade discussions likely won't slow down in the coming months.

Feb 4, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) drives to the basket past Washington Wizards forward Deni Avdija (8) in the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- Changes will likely be coming for the Phoenix Suns in the off-season.

The Suns have been at the epicenter of the NBA world ever since making a shock run to the NBA Finals in July 2021.

From the controversy surrounding the eventual exit of Robert Sarver from the franchise, to the Kevin Durant trade saga, to humbling playoff exits and everything in between - the last several years have been nothing short of a turbulent roller-coaster ride.

Unfortunately, many of the distinctly positive memories are long in the rearview after a second consecutive season of massively underperformaing relative to expectation - and it seems as if a retool is directly in the horizon.

One of the pieces of that equation is a potential exploration of a Bradley Beal trade - the Suns were notably working to make a Beal for Jimmy Butler swap a reality, but it never came to fruition - reportedly due to Beal's no-trade clause.

NBA insider Marc Stein believes the opposite, reporting that a reunion between Beal and the Washington Wizards could have been a reality at the trade deadline.

More from Stein:

"It would be a faulty characterization, with nearly a month's worth of reflection, to say that absolutely no team out there was willing to take on Bradley Beal's contract in one of those multiteam trade constructions that the Phoenix Suns tried and tried so hard to build... It turns out that the Washington Wizards, stunning as it sounds, gave real consideration to bringing Beal to the nation's capital," said Stein.

"While there continues to be no indication that Beal would have blessed such a trade to go through, league sources say Washington gave the concept legitimate contemplation.
The extent of the draft compensation sweeteners that would have been furnished to the Wizards as inducement for reacquiring Beal — had the talks gained any real traction — is not precisely known, but there is at least one aspect of the discussions that some involved thought had the potential to get Beal's attention."

The prospects of Beal taking over a particular franchise record for the Wizards franchise could be an enticing one to draw him back to the nation's capital - here's why.

"When Beal left the Wizards for Phoenix via trade in June 2023, he departed as the second-leading scoring in franchise history with 15,391 points ... just 160 points behind the legendary Elvin Hayes. Going back now, if nothing else, would have provided an easy (and perhaps even appealing) pathway to the top spot in Wizards annals for Beal," said Stein.

Beal has long been considered one of the greatest players to ever put on a Wizards uniform - breaking the scoring record would just be another major step towards climbing the totem pole. It also could be enticing for Beal to return to the place he called home for over a decade and to be the leader of a franchise that is looking to climb out of some of the darkest days in its history.

That doesn't mean Beal was keen on moving teams in the middle of the season - especially with his family already firmly established in the Valley.

"But Beal and his agent Mark Bartelstein were steadfast in the face of literally weeks of trade speculation involving the three-time former All-Star. Beal was simply not willing to waive his no-trade clause to go anywhere in the middle of the season, thus enabling the Warriors to trade for Butler when the Suns — hamstrung by so many roster-building restrictions as a team that has strayed so deeply into second apron luxury tax territory — could not."

Sam Amick of The Athletic further confirmed the sentiment that Beal and his family very much enjoy living in Phoenix - could tension with the front office and a lack of belief in the on-court fit eventually impact a decision to go elsewhere?

Bradley Beal loves being in Phoenix, per @sam_amick

“Bradley Beal loves Phoenix. I think his wife is gonna weigh in on that one as well and he’s got that no trade clause.”

(Via @RunItBackFDTV) pic.twitter.com/YAVdRBijqQ

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) March 3, 2025

It remains to be seen if Beal actually approves of working to find a trade partner in the off-season, but it does appear that there is at least one franchise interested in taking on the remaining two years of his deal if it became clear that a trade is the best path forward for both parties.

Beal returned last night from a two-game absence with an efficient 18-point outing - he will look to continue his recent string of quality performances against the Los Angeles Clippers tomorrow night.