The Miami Heat are in need of a good guard and the word going around is that this guy could be Bradley Beal. However, there are complications along the way although pundits feel that team president Pat Riley may eventually try to pull off something to snag the third overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft from the Washington Wizards.
A lot may depend on the Wizards next move. Beal is due a contract extension soon and sources claim that the 26-year-old guard has shown no indication of accepting it, the Washington Post said. If true, this could ignite and eventual trade with some NBA teams with the Miami Heat reportedly the frontrunner for his services.
The sudden mention of Beal's name may come as a surprise to most, especially since the Wizards made it known last month that they have no intention of dealing the two-time NBA All-Star, Jeff Goodman said. Beal remains under contract for two more seasons with an annual average salary of about $28 million. The Wizards embarked on a revamp last NBA season, making all of their players available. Surprisingly, a deal for Beal never came up, and Washington eventually cut it and said they were bent on keeping Beal who many presumed would be the new face of the franchise.
That title originally belonged to John Wall. But with the 28-year-old still recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon injury, the attention has somehow shifted the way of Beal. Like Beal, Wall has been mentioned in trade rumors although his contract (worth a whopping $171 million spread for four years per Spotrac) is something teams are unwilling to absorb for obvious team salary concerns.
The Heat could bite the bait and try to pull off a deal involving Beal and Wall. It is no secret that Miami is trading away some key players who won huge salaries. Goran Dragic, Dion Waiters, and James Johnson have been frequently mentioned along with Hassan Whiteside. The latter has already been dealt to the Portland Trail Blazers, and the consensus is that Riley and company are far from done dealing players who disappointed.
The Heat is expected to pursue a second NBA star after getting Jimmy Butler. Aside from Beal, talks of a potential Chris Paul trade has been mentioned in the rumor mill. CP3 was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder recently for Russell Westbrook, but the word out is that the Thunder may help Paul join a winning team of his choice. OKC is in rebuild mode, making it an unlikely last stop for the veteran guard.
