Bradley Beal is re-signing with the LA Clippers on a two-year free-agent deal. Considering he was a player the Miami Heat was, at the very least, considering signing to finalize their roster around Giannis Antetokounmpo, it's safe to say that the Clippers may have just saved the Heat from a possible mistake.
It's not even just about the idea that Beal is coming off hip surgery and a few injury-riddled seasons. It's also the fact that the Clippers signed Beal to a $6-plus million per year average deal. Had the Heat matched that offer from LA, that would've meant the team was using pretty much all of their remaining mid-level exception room on Beal.
That would've been too big of a gamble for this team to take.
The Heat couldn't take the risk with Bradley Beal
That's the type of risk that the Heat just don't need to take. With their final three roster spots, the Heat need to ensure that they can, at the very least, add two quality (and durable) contributors. As talented as Beal is, and as productive and accomplished as he's been throughout his career, the Heat taking such a big gamble would've been irresponsible in the first year with Giannis.
There are too many question marks surrounding Beal this season. Miami's "big" move after signing Giannis couldn't be one that depended on Beal's health. That was clearly never going to happen. Maybe at the veteran's minimum, there was an argument to be made, but at that number, it was never going to make sense for Miami.
There's no guarantee that the Heat will be able to sign another "name" player like Beal (though Klay Thompson or DeMar DeRozan would suffice), but even if neither of those two is in play, Miami may be better off signing two lower-level contributors with a better history of durability compared to such a big risk.
The Heat has to ace the final few roster spots around Giannis
At this point in the build around Giannis, the Heat needs to find consistent depth pieces that the coaching staff can lean on. That's why both DeRozan and Thompson make sense, without hesitation. And why many would've questioned a move for Beal, especially at that contract number.
For the Clippers, whose future is much more up in the air than the Heat's, this is a move that could end up working out for them. Especially if Beal can rebuild his trade value, the Clippers could flip him at the NBA Trade Deadline to a contender. Maybe a contender like Miami.
The Heat just have too much on the line heading into this season, so taking a big gamble on Beal's health just wasn't worth it right now. Ironically enough, the Clippers taking on this risk with Beal may have saved the Heat from making a similar move themselves. One that could've set them up for a much more costly result.
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