The Washington Wizards have been surprising fans for the last couple of years by being able to hold on to Bradley Beal. There have been movements with the hashtag #FreeBeal before, but it seems Bradley is set on staying in Washington for as long as he can help it.
Turns out, Beal is the only player in the league who can make the decision of playing for a particular team whenever he wants throughout the season. Many players that sign big contracts have been moved from the team that gave them the contract, like Russell Westbrook being traded every single season since signing his supermax with the OKC Thunder.
Bobby Marks has revealed that Beal is the only player with an explicit ‘no-trade clause’ in his contract, which means the Wizards can never trade Beal unless he is the one that okays the move. The Wizards are giving Beal superstar treatment that most players in the NBA don’t receive. This is his loyalty to Washington paying off.
One contract signed today that stands out is the five-year $251M one for Bradley Beal. Negotiated by Mark Bartelstein of @PrioritySports, the Beal contract consists of a no trade clause. He is the only player in the league to have a true no trade clause.
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) July 6, 2022
The Wizards have been trying to make a push towards competitiveness, and retaining Beal is crucial in that fight. Kristaps Porzingis will have a full offseason under his belt as a Wizard, and there are interesting signings around Beal that complement him really well.
Washington finally added a complementary guard with Beal in Delon Wright, who can focus on defense and creation while Beal has more freedom to be a pure scorer. They also added a scoring guard in Monte Morris, so there is versatility and creativity coming through the guards of the team. This also includes rookie Johnny Davis.
The frontcourt still has some great prospects in Daniel Gafford, Rui Hachimura, and Deni Avdija, with more veteran players in Kyle Kuzma and Porzingis also present. The Wizards are looking good for next season and will go all-in with Beal entering the latter half of his prime.
