Bradley Beal won’t approve trade to marquee NBA franchise, according to report

Bradley Beal is already flexing his no-trade clause.

Bradley Beal’s name has been in NBA trade rumors for almost the entire season as the Phoenix Suns have slipped down the Western Conference standings. There’s a catch: Beal is one of two players in the league with a no-trade clause, which he negotiated as part of his max contract with the Washington Wizards back in 2022. LeBron James is the other.

It’s no secret that the Suns want disgruntled Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler. Beal would need to be sent out in that trade, but the Heat reportedly don’t want him. That means a potential Butler trade to Phoenix has to be a multi-team deal where Beal goes to an approved location. Beal has already lost his starting spot with the Suns this season, and still has two years, $110 million remaining on his contract after this season. He isn’t going to have many suitors at that price point, and he’s already ruled out one franchise that was reportedly considering him.

Beal would not accept a trade to the Chicago Bulls, according to reporter Fred Katz of The Athletic.

Chicago was talked about as a potential destination for Beal as it continues shopping its own veteran stars. The Bulls have been trying to trade Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic since last summer, but teams are reportedly scared off by their big contracts. One possible version of the Butler trade to Phoenix, LaVine to the Milwaukee Bucks, expiring contracts to Miami, and Beal to Chicago, with future draft picks going to both the Bulls and Heat. That trade doesn’t work anymore with Beal rejecting the Bulls.

The deal never really made sense for Chicago. LaVine is a lot better than Beal at this point in their careers, and he’s making less money. The Bulls would have needed at least premium future first-round pick in the deal (Milwaukee’s 2031 pick, for example) in addition to a couple of Phoenix’s late firsts recently acquired from Utah. Chicago deserved to get first-round compensation for trading a good player in LaVine, and more draft compensation for taking one perhaps the worst contract in the league in Beal.

Beal wields an enormous amount of power as the trade deadline approaches. It’s hard to find a team that would actually want to take on Beal and all the money he’s owed right now, and even then, he has to approve the deal. With Butler suspended again by the Heat on Monday, it feels like talks between Phoenix and Miami are holding up the entire trade deadline right now. Once this one domino falls, maybe we’ll actually get some more deals.

Here’s what ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported on Monday about the Bulls’ potential interest in Beal:

The Suns have the highest payroll in NBA history, and entered Monday night at No. 8 in the Western Conference standings. The Heat are crumbling and could be in for a long rebuild. The Bulls are generally hopeless, like always. Bradley Beal? Well, he’s still getting paid mightily to play wherever he wants.