Despite the successes of the Billy Donovan era in Gainesville, Florida basketball does not have much in the way of representation currently in the National Basketball Association, as only five players are signed to active contracts and only four of those have actually played in a game. However, there is one former Gator who has been making big waves in the league these past few years and he is currently at the top of the trade talk discussion.
Washington Wizards star guard Bradley Beal, a one-and-doner in Gainesville who dropped a career-high 60 points last week, is the primary focus of CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn, who sees the nine-year veteran as the premier talent currently available on the trade market. Here is what he had to say about the Wizards’ prolific scorer.
1. Bradley Beal
Beal is the obvious name here. The Wizards are 3-8 and have missed the past two postseasons. He has openly complained about his team’s defense and how it continually manages to waste his best individual games. His contract lasts only through the 2021-22 season, and after giving up a first-round to acquire Russell Westbrook, the Wizards are incentivized to get as much back for Beal as possible to help ensure a smooth rebuild. Nothing they’ve said or done to this point indicates a willingness to deal their star shooting guard, but history says that if the Wizards don’t turn things around soon, Beal will force the issue. This much, we can safely assume.
What is more open to speculation, though, is what impact Beal’s potential availability had on the Harden sweepstakes. Brooklyn paid a premium for Harden, and justifiably so. He is a better player than Beal, but he’s five years older and much more difficult to fit within a typical contending roster. Offenses need to be constructed around Harden. Beal can fit within any offensive construction.
Philadelphia was willing to give up Ben Simmons in a deal for Harden, but haggled over Tyrese Maxey, according to The New York Times’ Marc Stein. Miami bowed out early in the process according to multiple reports, but they have reportedly coveted Beal for quite some time. Both teams have star big men in their 20s. Might they prefer to pair those big men with the 26-year-old Beal to the 31-year-old Harden?
We won’t know for certain until Beal becomes available. For now, what we can say is that reports throughout the process suggested that Houston was not interested in Brooklyn’s offer for Harden. That they eventually took it likely means that other teams with preferable packages just didn’t offer what the Rockets expected them to. Beal is the simplest answer as to why. Multiple teams kept their powder dry in the Harden sweepstakes, and without an obvious follower to Beal on the star market, it’s almost impossible to deny his impact on the Harden deal.
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