Bradley Beal has been one of the long list of star names that have been linked to the Boston Celtics since the “rebuilding era” has began under Brad Stevens. Today, the Hou-Donny creates the perfect deal to land him.
Whether it was Paul George, Demarcus Cousins, or Jimmy Butler, basically every star-but-not-superstar linked to being unhappy with their current team have had Boston Celtics rumors over their heads at one point or another. Bradley Beal however, has always been one of the more realistic options. Here is how the Cs could make a splash in the off-season and sign the star out of Washington:
The Trade:
"Boston Celtics receive: Bradley Beal Washington receives: Gordon Hayward, Three 2020 first-round picks (#14, #26, #30), Carsen Edwards"
Why the Boston Celtics accept:
This one should be fairly obvious. You’re getting the best player in the deal, who is younger than the best player who you’re giving up. The three first-round picks are basically house money at this point. The Memphis pick (#14) was traded in 2015 to the Celtics for Jeff Green, and the 30th pick–which was originally Milwaukee’s pick before they traded it to Phoenix–was then traded to the Boston Celtics for Aron Baynes in a simple cap-space clearing move.
Basically, what that means is the Celtics were handed two first-round picks this year. Hayward, Edwards and their own first-round pick sounds a lot more appetizing for Boston, which is basically what the trade is.
Beal is also under contract for four more years. Because of the way the soft cap in the NBA works, one thing to note is if Hayward does opt out, the Boston Celtics don’t have 30+ million in cap space. They will have roughly less than $10 million.
However, if you bring in Beal while dealing Hayward, you will be able to fit his contract under the salary cap. Kemba Walker, Beal, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum (pending re-signing) becomes your core for at-minimum three more seasons.
Finally, I’d like to address any Hayward stans that may say he helps the team more than Beal will. Hayward’s biggest strength is his ability to facilitate the half-court offense. Analysts raved about how when Hayward was on the floor, the offense moved much better.
Insert Beal, who averaged over six assists last season in a dreadful Wizards offense, and I think your ball movement will be just fine.
Why the Washington Wizards accept:
The Wizards are in danger of being something that should be feared more than anything in the NBA. Average. John Wall may be the biggest question mark in the NBA, but the Wizards are hopeful he will return to his normal-form when healthy.
Ironically enough, that may not be the best-case scenario for Washington.
At their peak of the Wall/Beal duo, the Wizards finished 49-33 and lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals. This was the roster that also had Kelly Oubre, Bojan Bogdonavic, and Otto Porter, all now averaging 17-20 points per game since leaving Washington. In 2020, their best piece outside the duo, Davis Bertans, is a restricted free agent and may demand a contract outside of Washington’s price range.
So what does this mean for the Wizards of Washington? Keeping their same roster, they will be nothing more than a #5 seed and a second-round elimination to the Bucks or Heat at best. They will pick around #20 in the draft and continue to ride out their two star players contract as a fun-but-average team that never has a real shot of bringing home a title.
Being a 22-year old who has lived in Boston his entire life, I can’t speak for Wizards fans. What I can say, is competing for a title is much more fun than being a #5-#6 seed every year.
No one right now is going to take on the current contract of John Wall, due mainly to uncertainty. If Beal does find his way out of town, and Wall gets the team to himself (assuming health), watch how many teams start inquiring about the point guard if he’s averaging 20 points and eight assists by the trade deadline.
Would the Lakers give up a first, or maybe two, to try to run it back and win another title? Would the Clippers take a shot at a healthy Wall to try and get over the hump of the Lakers? Maybe the Bucks make a run to try and get Giannis to stay in Milwaukee by acquiring Wall.
In order for any of these situations to happen you need Wall to put up numbers. We’ve seen it time and time again in the NBA: once one star leaves, the other’s numbers sky-rocket.
Let Wall get a half-season to himself and dump him too. It’s time to officially rebuild in Washington.
Why the trade makes sense:
In the NBA, there’s really only one way to win: SUPERSTARS, SUPERSTARS, SUPERSTARS.
It’s no coincidence that for the last two seasons the team that Kawhi Leonard or Lebron James joined won a title. While unhappy superstars seem to pop up every year, Washington is not a primetime destination. Their best way to win may be to build through the draft, hope you get lucky and land a #1 pick and build around that guy.
The three first-round picks may get you that guy without even having to land a top lottery pick. Hayward could be another mid-season trade, or maybe he shows out in Washington and signs an extension if he returns to the player he once was. Or, at the very least, his contract expires at the end of the season…and if he continues to be the Gordon Hayward of late, you at least get $34 million off your books.
As for Carsen Edwards, he simply opens up another roster spot for Boston for a legitimate bench piece. Possibly a veteran who will play for the league minimum? On the Wizards side, it’s another low-risk, high reward piece. They have found recent success with undersized point guards in Ish Smith and Shabazz Napier, both of which had a successful season coming to Washington last season. Maybe they can replicate that with Edwards and use him as a backup point guard.
As for Boston, you hope that the combination of Walker, Beal, Brown and Tatum is enough to push you over the top. None of them may be superstars, but four stars may be enough to get it done. Regardless, the Boston Celtics need a change of personel and Beal could be the guy to put them over the top.
It’s very rare in today’s NBA to see an unhappy star player go for anything more than a top-10 draft pick. If Washington can then flip #14, #26 and #30 to get into the later top-10, that is already above market-value for Beal. Add in Hayward and Edwards, and you may not get a better offer for the shooting guard.