If you were under the belief that a Bradley Beal trade to the Boston Celtics was somewhat unrealistic this offseason, then you’re on the same page with a former executive for the ball club and a former league General Manager in Ryan McDonough.
Recently, when speaking on the concept of such a blockbuster with NBA Sports Boston, McDonough stated that the optics of such a scenario would be much more complicated than people believe, stating that, in order for a deal like this to happen the C’s would almost certainly have to gut the core that just recently guided them to the NBA Finals:
"“If Beal wanted to force his way to Boston and the Wizards were willing to cooperate, a sign-and-trade is the clear path,” McDonough noted. “Other than that, Boston would have to gut its entire roster other than Tatum and maybe (Jaylen) Brown.”“Al Horford‘s contract would probably be in there — $26.5 million on an expiring deal,” McDonough added. “And then what does Washington want? Do they want Robert Williams, Grant Williams, draft picks? Those are Boston’s most valuable assets outside of Tatum and Brown.”"
This goes along with a similar tone to what we at HH recently discussed in an article published earlier this week, as we believe that, in the event of Bradley Beal trade discussions between the Wizards and Boston Celtics, there are numerous players, even outside of Jayson Tatum, that should be viewed as untouchable, and if their non-inclusion in negotiations should lessen Washington’s interest in making a move, then Brad Stevens and co. should just bow out altogether.
Now, though McDonough is under the assumption that a mega-deal such as this would be hard to pull off this summer, this is not to say that he’s completely shut the door on a trade happening at some point in the future:
"“I think the Celtics could acquire Beal, but I think the way that would happen would be a trade either at the trade deadline or next offseason,” McDonough said. “I think it’s very unlikely that Beal ends up in a Celtics uniform to start this season.”"
Frankly, until Bradley Beal finds himself suiting up for another franchise or publicly stating that he does not want to play in eastern Massachusetts, the link between him and the Boston Celtics will live on.
Though he likely will not be starting off the 2022-23 campaign donning green and white threads, there’s still a chance that, in time, we could see the star guard making his way north and joining forces with his long-time friend in Tatum.