After years of rumors, the Washington Wizards have finally traded All-Star guard Bradley Beal. The team will send Beal to the Phoenix Suns, according to EPSN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The trade will send Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, multiple second-round picks and pick trades to the Wizards, according to the report.
The deal was an “extremely complicated process with so many different hurdles to jump through,” according to Beal’s agent Mark Bartelstein, via Wojnarowski.
The trade comes about a year after the Wizards signed Beal to a five-year, $251 million extension. This extension also included a no-trade clause, which Beal waived to join Phoenix. Beal still has four years and over $200 million left on his contract.
The move ends Beal’s 11-year run in Washington. The team drafted Beal with the No. 3 overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. Beal showed a lot of promise early in his career, making the NBA All-Rookie Team after averaging 13.9 points in his first season in the league.
After a few solid years, Beal took his game to another level in the 2016-17 NBA season. He averaged 23.1 points and led the Wizards to a fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. Beal maintained that production going forward and made the All-Star team in three of his next four seasons, averaging a career-high 31.3 points in the 2020 NBA season. -21.
Beal has battled various injuries since then but remained an effective player when healthy. He missed time during the 2021-22 NBA season due to COVID-19 and a wrist injury. Beal was limited to 50 games last season with foot, hamstring and knee issues. Despite those injuries, Beal has averaged 23.2 points over the past two seasons.