Despite having the highest payroll in the NBA this season, the Suns embarrassingly missed the playoffs. Following this disappointing season, major changes for the organization were inevitable as it has already hired former Cavaliers’ assistant Jordan Ott to become Phoenix’s new head coach. There are also rumors of the Suns trading Kevin Durant before the NBA Draft in 20 days as well as plenty of speculation about what the franchise will do with Beal. In response to a fan’s tweet about Beal, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix had this to say about Beal and the Suns:
Beal is coming off a disappointing season. The former All-Star appeared in only 53 games, averaging 17 points, 3.7 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game. Beal finished dead last in plus/minus for the Suns and the club was an ugly 22-31 with the shooting guard active.
As Gambadoro said in his tweet, Beal is virtually un-tradeable. The former Florida Gator makes $53.6 million next season and then has a player option the following season, but he will almost certainly opt-in, as he is set to make $57.1 million that season. To make matters worse, Beal has a no-trade clause, so he has the right to veto any trade he doesn’t approve of. He reportedly would prefer to stay in Phoenix, but things may have changed now with Gambadoro reporting that the Suns “100%” do not want him back.
While a trade for Beal is very unlikely, a buyout is possible, but according to Gambadoro in a later tweet, the Suns “can not buy him out at his full salary so he would have to take less”. The only reason for Beal to ever agree to a buyout for less money is that he has a set plan to join another team that is more appealing to him. While he is coming off a bad season by his standards, the guard is still only 31 years old and certainly has the potential to provide some offense to a contending team in a smaller role. The Suns will likely allow Beal to explore other options and the guard should be able to find some suitors, but again, will these possible situations be appealing enough for Beal to leave money on the table and agree to a buyout with Phoenix? That feels unlikely, but this certainly is a more likely outcome than Beal getting traded.
Now, if neither a trade or buyout happens, Beal and the Suns will be forced to make amends and let him play for the team. With Ott now calling the shots and Durant likely on his way out very soon, there is some hope that Beal could regain his form and have a bounce-back season. In the 11 games Beal played without Durant last season, his scoring increased to 18.5 PPG. Unfortunately, the Suns went just 2-9 in that span.
Phoenix also could go the route of not playing Beal and possibly forcing him to accept a shortened buyout, which feels like the most likely situation given Gambadoro’s report. Or, the Suns could let Beal play to start the season and have him on a short leash. If he fails to make an impact, quickly pull the plug and sit him with hopes that he agrees to a buyout. That feels like the best plan for Phoenix, but this organization made some extremely questionable moves to get in this current mess, so it’s difficult to say where the club goes from here.
With the Suns’ roster for next season very uncertain right now, Phoenix carries +9000 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to win the NBA Championship next season, which are the 19th-best odds of the 30 NBA teams.
