Guard Bradley Beal's scoring hit an eight-year low last season, his first with the Phoenix Suns, as he dealt with a litany of injuries. However, it's hard to deny the impact of his trade to the Suns in June 2023—even if that trade had a limited impact on Beal himself.
On Tuesday's edition of the Run Your Race podcast with G-League guard Theo Pinson and his friend, AJ Richardson, Beal outlined the events that led up to his exit from the Washington Wizards.
"Phoenix wasn't even in the picture for me to go to," Beal said. "That was a flyball that came out of nowhere."
According to Beal, two other teams seriously engaged the Wizards in the run-up to the trade.
"I'm waiting on [the Miami Heat] to hit me a grounder. [The Milwaukee Bucks]. Those were kind of, like, my two," Beal said. "Miami didn't wanna do it. Milwaukee—I didn't really like, they were trading [forward Khris] Middleton. They'll probably hate that I'm telling this story, but whatever."
Bradley Beal on being traded to Phoenix:
— NBA Retweet (@RTNBA) October 8, 2024
“Phoenix wasn’t even in the picture [for me to go to]. That was a fly ball that came out of no where… I’m waiting on Miami [and] Milwaukee, those where kind of like my two” 👀
via Run Your Race, @TidalLeague pic.twitter.com/StbQLo5JT8
Beal suggested Middleton declined his player option, which was necessary to make a deal between the Bucks and Washington happen.
"The loyalty part in that—trading someone who won y'all a championship [in 2021]," Beal said. "He was a key piece to y'all winning a championship. That didn't sit right with me."
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bradley Beal Reveals Which Teams Nearly Traded For Him Before Suns Entered Picture.
