Windhorst: Bradley Beal Trade Would Bring Surprisingly Low Return Due to Contract

Despite his status as a three-time All-Star, Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal reportedly doesn’t hold a ton of value on the trade market.

During an appearance Wednesday on Keyshawn, JWill and Max, ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst discussed Beal’s trade value and why he believes it is lower than most would probably expect (beginning at the 3:20 mark):

Windhorst said he believes observers will be “very surprised” by how little a Beal trade nets the Wizards if they trade him before next week’s NBA draft.

The main reason for that is Beal’s robust contract, as he signed a five-year, $251.0 million supermax extension last year, which included a no-trade clause.

Beal, who will be 30 at the start of the 2023-24 season, is not far removed from averaging over 30 points per game in back-to-back seasons in 2019-20 and 2020-21, but his scoring has dropped off considerably since then. He has also struggled to stay healthy, with injuries limiting him to 40 games in 2021-22 and 50 games last season.

As the top player for a Wizards team that finished 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 35-47 record last season, Beal averaged 23.2 points, 5.4 assists, 3.9 rebounds and matched his career-low with 1.6 three-pointers made per game. He shot a career-best 50.6 percent from the field and 36.5 percent from beyond the arc.

Beal focused more on his mid-range game last season, resulting in only 4.4 three-point attempts per game, which was his lowest since 2014-15. However, that also helped him have his most efficient season overall as a shooter.

Washington enters the offseason in a difficult spot since its second- and third-best players in Kristaps Porziņģis and Kyle Kuzma both have player options for next season, meaning they can become unrestricted free agents this offseason. If the Wizards lose them, they may be best off entering a full rebuild around younger players like Johnny Davis, Deni Avdija and whomever they select with the No. 8 overall pick in this year’s draft.

Beal would normally be their best trade asset in terms of bringing in draft picks and more young players, but as Windhorst mentioned, that may not actually be the case.

In addition to a team having to take on a huge contract, Windhorst noted that Beal’s no-trade clause would almost allow him to dictate how much any team that trades for him has to give up, which would also adversely impact Washington’s return.

The Wizards are in no-man’s land after missing the playoffs last season. If Beal is not a desirable trade chip, they have no easy way of transitioning into a rebuild.