Sources: Latest Bradley Beal Trade Rumors, Wizards Hope to Poach Elite Rival GM | Launderer report

Bradley Beal is not available for commerce.

That was the case before the Washington Wizards’ remarkable victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night, and it continues to be the story of their franchise. All parties, from the top decision-makers at the Wizards’ front office to members of Beal’s representation, insist the marriage between the superstar and the organization is alive and well.

“It doesn’t seem like it’s a bluff to push the price up,” says one longtime executive. “They don’t want to trade it.”

Beal has always been loyal to the one team in his nine-year NBA career. Likewise, the Wizards remained only determined to build a playoff-caliber roster around the league’s top scorer. That’s why they traded beloved goalie John Wall and their 2023 lottery-protected first-round pick for Russell Westbrook in early December.

The Wizards, well almost at full strength, have just proven they can beat Eastern Conference leaders like the Nets. And while they sit just 4-12, only three games now separate them from the 9-11 Cleveland Cavaliers, who currently have the seventh best record in the conference.

The Wizards, however, are still far from being a true contender for the championship. And in an NBA that increasingly looks like an arms race rather than a competition on the court, rivals are circling that situation from close quarters. For every exciting Wizards win, there will be more losses and more screenshots of a frustrated Beal hanging his head on the swaying bench on the internet.

Beal, 27, able to test free agency after the 2021-22 season, opposing front offices anticipate an inevitable inflection point, when the game’s best shooting guard and / or his incumbent franchise finally agree that ‘it is better to change. If James Harden’s trade request was just the most recent version of the league superstar carousel, Beal is the breakthrough talent many expect the next turn to be up front and center.

“There is no realistic possibility of [them] be a good team under his contract, ”says the longtime decision maker.

This pivotal moment is unlikely to happen until the end of the 2020-2021 campaign. There is a feeling around the league that regardless of their track record, the Wizards ownership group would not approve any deal that would take Beal away from Washington until this offseason at the earliest.

“Teams say it all the time, but it feels like it’s real,” said an assistant general manager.

Especially since rumors in NBA circles suggest the Wizards are planning another aggressive pursuit to land Toronto Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri this summer to pilot their basketball operations.

The Washington ownership group is said to include deep-pocketed minority investors keen to hunt Ujiri’s services, for which the franchise is said to be willing to offer more than $ 10 million a year and an opportunity to take its own stake, according to ESPN. Adrian Wojnarowski. Leading Wizards, according to one school of thought, is a much more intriguing opportunity with Beal on your roster, in his prime, and two full seasons remaining on his contract (including a 2022-23 player option).

That could still change at any time. As several Wizards staff members and a league source familiar with Beal’s thinking told B / R, a single shift can change the whole pace of a franchise. Washington has played just 16 games in this scheduled 72-game season. There is still a lot of room between February 1 and the March 25 trade deadline.

“I think a lot of it depends on who changes first: Brad or the property,” says an Eastern Conference scout.

If Beal changes his mind and tells Wizards management that he would like to play elsewhere, there is already a somewhat established market for what would undoubtedly bring Washington a lucrative return.

The New Orleans Pelicans ‘interest in Beal remains one of the league’s biggest open secrets, and it looks like their massive transfer to Jrue Holiday would be the Wizards’ required starting point in any negotiation. With a wealth of future draft capital, veteran contracts, and five recent first-round picks under 25 (not counting Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram), New Orleans have the flexibility to offer Washington a package that rivals. with what Brooklyn paid to acquire Harden, and still surrounds Beal with a winning combination around him.

The Nuggets have been as tied to Beal as the Pelicans, and they could offer Washington the only successful business ingredient it seems New Orleans can’t: a top-notch bona fide prospect in Michael Porter Jr. Yet this is where all semblance of certainty ends. hypothetical.

Brooklyn is no longer a viable candidate for Beal after splurging to get Harden. The Philadelphia 76ers could return to the table with Ben Simmons, as they ultimately did in their Harden talks, but many in the league believe Washington would need an extra draft capital bonus that Philadelphia didn’t appear to be. willing to include in its openings Harden.

“The number of teams that could potentially obtain [Washington’s] the interest here would be minimal ”, declares a capologue.

Teams that typically go big game hunting (Miami, Toronto Ujiri Regime, Dallas) don’t seem to have enough flexibility to provide Washington with sufficient compensation. But there are a few wild card contenders to watch out for.

Should Beal become available this season, Atlanta could be a surprising landing spot. The Hawks 10-9, currently sixth in the East, are as playoff-focused as the Wizards. And before Atlanta comes Onyeka Okongwu with the No.6 draft pick, Washington had hoped the USC big man would still be available at his own pick at No.9, according to league sources.

The Hawks have also widely reported that 2018 first-round pick Kevin Huerter was available via trade ahead of draft night. Atlanta is expected to include Tony Snell and another smaller contract to match Beal’s salary. The addition of John Collins make the money work, and if the Wizards are ready to sign him to the max level contract, the sources say he wants in his next restricted free agency, Atlanta has all of its first players as well as the 2022 first-round pick protected by the Lottery of ‘Oklahoma City Thunder.

The New York Knicks have $ 17 million in cap, a number of expiring contracts, several recent first-round picks on their roster and a closet full of future draft picks at their disposal. The Knicks have never been very interested in Westbrook this offseason, according to league sources. But adding Beal may be worth the risk. The Knicks would finally have an undisputed All-NBA talent on their roster, still several years before they turn 30, with a clean cap sheet to add another co-star.

The Knicks could offer Washington some pay relief that should intrigue the senior Wizards. Whatever the post-Beal future in Washington, Washington will likely be crippled over the remaining two years and over $ 80 million on the Westbrook deal.

For now, all this is still theoretical. We repeat: Bradley Beal is not commercially available. He will continue to hook 30 to opponents left and right, even if he does not register a field goal attempt until the second quarter as he did against Brooklyn. Maybe the Wizards can rack up some more inspiring wins like this thriller against the Nets.

“It wasn’t something I needed to see, per se, but I felt our effort and the way we played were great,” Beal told reporters after the game. “It’s not just one guy who won us the game or two guys. It was a collective effort of everyone.”

Much like the joint effort that currently keeps the All-Star in Washington.

Jake Fischer covered the NBA for Illustrated sports and is the author of Built to lose: How the era of NBA tankers changed the league forever. Follow him on twitter @JakeLFischer.