The Miami Heat are front and center. They should be standing at attention and with their ears perked way up towards the sky.
That sound that they hear, one might ask? Oh, that’s nothing more than the trade winds blowing in from up north, the nation’s capital, to be precise.
Reports have begun to matriculate over the last few days about Bradley Beal and his state of being in his current situation.
For the most part, things seems to indicate that said being isn’t of a happy nature and that the electric two-guard may be looking to get out of Chocolate City in the near future. With connections to the Miami Heat, it would seem, over the last season or so, you’d have to imagine that those in charge of potentially making such a deal happen are eager to see or hear more about Beal’s intentions.
Certainly, with him now no longer being apart of the Team USA proceedings in the Olympics, those decisions should come more sooner than later. But what are the reports saying?
The Miami Heat should be all-in on Bradley Beal, when he’s made available after requesting out of Washington.
While there have been many rumors over the last few years about Beal and his status with the Wizards, the latest rounds of rumors seem to be as legit as they have ever been. Here is one of the more prevalent ones that’s making the rounds, per Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
"“He knows he has to make a decision before the draft,” one source with direct knowledge of Beal’s thinking told Bleacher Report. For the past year, people familiar with Beal’s dedicated relationship to the Wizards have consistently rebuffed the notion he had interest in playing elsewhere. Yet a second source close to Beal, when contacted by B/R, confirmed the situation is now fluid."
That’s an interesting report there, very interesting, indeed. Fischer also moves on to say more about the teams that might have interest in acquiring Beal, outside of the Miami Heat.
He can be quoted as saying that he’s heard “mentioned by multiple sources that he would welcome joining teams such as Boston, Golden State, Miami or Philadelphia”. When you look at those teams that were named, outside of Miami, they all have rather sizable pieces or potential packages to offer, especially in relation to the Miami Heat.
While all of that is important, supremely and as in Bradley Beal’s future (hopefully with the Miami Heat), how he got here is probably the most interesting part of it all.
Before the Miami Heat pursuit though, how’d it get this bad in DC?
Fully Committed to winning in Washington, as recently as this past February, it seems that Beal doesn’t feel the same way now. It isn’t that hard to see why though.
Just an offseason after seeing his longtime running mate shipped off to Houston, John Wall, he may be on the precipice of seeing it happen again. According to reports and rumors as well, the Los Angeles Lakers may be hot on the trails of one, Russell Westbrook, Beal’s current point guard in Washington.
With Washington in no position to be picky, they might be better served moving him for value in youth, as opposed to holding on to him with no clear path towards winning a title. That leads here though.
If that is the case, it’s, simply, time for Bradley Beal to consider leaving. There would be nothing else that he would have left to prove there, as no matter how much loyalty and conviction to win there that he has, if they don’t share in that convictions it’s impossible.
By moving Westbrook and a year removed from trading Wall, that’s the only read that Beal can make from his perspective. With the addition of Westbrook, combined with the Olympics that were supposed to take place last summer, it was all supposed to be a bridge to building something special in Washington, led by Beal and Westbrook.
While COVID had plans of its own, the Wizards didn’t help themselves out there any by playing themselves closer to a possible rebuild than a title. At the end of the day, Beal deserves an opportunity, guilt free, to go elsewhere.
They’ve had ample opportunity to be better and just can’t seem to get it right with that bunch in Washington. Just hope that when he leaves, because the smart money should be on him doing so, that his next stop is South Florida.