Could Bradley Beal Finally Reach His Max Potential?
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Now that the regular season and post-season are finally over, the trade rumors and speculations are on! This coming season, there will be numerous trades, and one that the focus should be on is the underrated star, Bradley Beal.
Beal was the third overall draft pick by the Washington Wizards back in 2012 and has remained with the Wizards since. With his time on the Wizards, Beal has made a good amount of accomplishments. He was a three-time all-star in the years 2018, 2019, and 2021, along with being announced on the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2013 and on the All-NBA Third Team in 2021. In his career, Beal has he is a potential star player, so it raises the question as to why he hasn’t been highly speculated by other NBA teams to prove his maximum potential. The answer is easy: he’s on the Washington Wizards. Beal has even stated that he truly wants to remain on the Wizards, but does he genuinely still believe that?
The Wizards have not necessarily made great strides to be a contender in a championship, and frankly, even the playoffs. Some could say the trade of John Wall could be the case, but others argue it didn’t change anything. The only difference made was Bradley’s time to step up and lead the team. Beal did an excellent job for himself but didn’t necessarily have the support of the rest of the team. With the Wizards' struggle in the front and backcourt, Beal had to learn how to take it upon himself to win games. Despite the Wizards winning troubles, Beal averaged 23.2 points per game, 5.4 assists per game, 3.9 rebounds per game while shooting 36.5 percent from the three and 84.2 percent from the free throw line in the 2022-23 NBA season — not to mention his 50.6 percent field goal percentage. Beal has had an impressive season that no one seemed to notice — maybe until now.
The Miami Heat are heavily involved in trading rumors this summer, and a lot of supposition has circled Bradley Beal potentially heading down south to play for the Heat. According to multiple reports, the Wizards have decided to trade Beal to the Heat and begin the necessary rebuild of the Wizard’s team. According to sports news site The Athletic, the five-year, $251 million contract that Beal and the Wizards agreed to last July contains a no-trade clause. This allows Beal to prevent any sort of trade. Therefore, the franchise and Beal must cooperate to make a trade happen. Additionally, a 15 percent trade incentive is included in the deal.
Beal joining Miami could just be the lift he needs to play with a championship-contending team— not counting this past summer of course. There will be a whirlwind of trades, but fans are interested to see if Bradley Beal and Jimmy Butler become the duo of all duos this next NBA season.
Source: Charania, Shams, and Josh Robbins. “Beal, Wizards Would Work on Trade If Team Chooses Rebuild.” The Athletic, 14 June 2023, theathletic.com/4609705/2023/06/14/bradley-beal-wizards-trade/.
