Washington Wizards: Why it’s finally time to trade Bradley Beal

It’s finally time for the Washington Wizards to trade Bradley Beal. 

Bradley Beal has leaned in again to rumors he may be open to a trade away from the Washington Wizards once more. A Beal trade would send shockwaves through the NBA. Up to now, the narrative has been that Beal does want to make it work in D.C., but he wants the super-max to stick around.

Now Wizards fans need to ask themselves, do they want to repeat history?

The Wizards just recently off-loaded John Wall and his super-max deal. While Beal is currently better than Wall was during his final years in D.C., the Wizards need to ask whether they are willing to give another massive contract to a flashy player who has not achieved much team success.

The Wizards need to trade Beal if they want to succeed. A super-max contract pays a player who has achieved specific benchmarks 35 percent of a team’s cap. This summer, Beal could receive a five-year, $242 million deal, which would pay Beal $48 million annually and put him in the stratosphere of Steph Curry and Giannis in terms of contracts.

Beal is a fine player and an All-Star talent, but he has been sub-par this year. Beal has never been considered an MVP or mentioned in the same level of player as Curry or Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The Wizards started hot but have cooled to a 24-27 record. Beal has seen his scoring decrease from 30-plus points per game the last two seasons to 23.2 this year. Giving Beal a massive contract would also limit any player movement in D.C. So, you would be rewarding a player on a down year and, in doing so, hindering future improvement from outside acquisitions.

The Wizards are already over the cap for this year and next year, and Beal’s super-max would ensure they limit cap room moving forward. Another lesson the Wizards should have learned from the Wall super-max contract.

A Beal trade could be the honest reset the Wizards have needed for a while. Beal is almost 29 years old. While he may not be slowing down this year or next year, he will be in that contract’s 4th and 5th years.

The Wizards know first-hand off-loading massive contracts require draft capital. They needed to throw a pick in to dump Wall’s contract. A Beal trade now could net positive assets for the Wizards, possibly a young prospect and picks package, something to help them build future success down the line.

The Wizards have not been able to win with Bradley Beal in the past. When his cap number goes up, and they have less cap space, how can they win in the future?