The Phoenix Suns are in a quagmire with guard Bradley Beal. He is fresh off his least productive NBA season in a long time and even came off the bench for the Suns at times, yet he is set to make more than $53 million in the 2025-26 season.
The size of his contract alone will seemingly make Beal tough for the Suns to move, and his no-trade clause further complicates matters, as the Suns have to get Beal’s approval on any trade they make regarding him.
The Suns have their work cut out for them to move Beal to another team via trade, but according to radio show host John Gambadoro, the Suns want him off the team in one way or another.
They do NOT want him back. But he is untradable and if he does not agree to a buyout they may be stuck with him. One of the questions they asked candidates during the coaching cycle was what you would do with Beal. They 100% don't want him and are looking at how to get out. https://t.co/skFOPh7T1r
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) June 5, 2025
The Suns acquired Beal back in the summer of 2023 in a three-team trade with the Indiana Pacers as well, and the Washington Wizards got a trade package highlighted by draft capital in return for a player who earned three All-Star selections as a Wizard.
The hope was that Beal would be a great complement to forward Kevin Durant and guard Devin Booker and prove to be what the Suns needed to get over the hump and contend in the West. However, those hopes have seemingly been all but dashed, as the Suns haven’t even won a playoff series with him in the fold.
Beal’s first season with the Suns ended with the team getting swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs. More recently, the Suns failed to even qualify for the 2025 NBA Playoffs, as they ended up with fewer than 40 wins on the season.
Beal was limited to just 53 appearances in the 2024-25 regular season and averaged 17.0 points per game, his lowest scoring average since he was in just his third NBA season and still playing for the Wizards.
Folks should expect the Suns to get creative in their efforts to offload Beal and his contract this offseason, but whether or not they will successfully be able to get rid of him remains to be seen.
