The Boston Celtics definitely aren't among LeBron James' potential next destinations, but it's likely that whoever he chooses will make them a tougher competitor for Boston to beat. LeBron's next decision is apparently having an effect on some of the key remaining free agents, including Bradley Beal.
Yes, this concerns the Celtics.
NBA Insider Jake Fischer reported on Bleacher Report's live stream that James' decision isn't necessarily preventing Beal from being signed, but is affecting where he chooses. He also revealed that Miami (one of LeBron's reported suitors) is interested in Beal but that Boston shouldn't be ruled out.
“Bradley Beal has got several options,” Fischer said. “I was told today that Beal’s decision is not exactly being held up by LeBron, but it is being impacted by it. Because I do think there’s some Miami interest there. I wouldn’t rule out Boston for Beal because of the connection with Jayson Tatum. I even asked about that today, and I was not told to rule out Boston, so there you go.”
This isn't the first time Beal has come up as a possible option for Boston, though it has never been confirmed whether the Celtics currently want him on the team. Given that he shares St. Louis roots with Tatum, it would make sense. Better yet, the Celtics could use another ballhandler in their rotation if they wanted one.
At the same time, Brad Stevens has never been one to let sentiment affect his decisions. Even if Beal and Tatum want to team up, Stevens has made it clear that he calls the shots. If he adds Beal, it would be because he believes Beal can help more than anything else.
Getting back to Fischer's words though, there are two ways to interpret this.
1. Beal wants to team up with LeBron in South Beach
LeBron re-joining Miami means he's going to a team led led by Giannis Antetokounpo and Bam Adebayo. As like what's happened whenever James switches teams, players typically do see him as an easy route to get a ring. He's not the guarantee he used to be by himself, but him and the Greek Freak would be very appealing to a guy like Beal.
On paper, Beal would give Miami shooting that they emphasized heavily when James was there. As Celtics fans know, they poached Ray Allen from Boston because of all the spacing he would get and taking him away from Boston was going to hurt them.
Beal came into the NBA as a sharpshooter, but became less so when he was depended on more of an offensive engine. Those days ae gone, but transitioning into more of a three-point specialist probably won't be too hard for him when paired with two of the most physically imposing players in the NBA.
2. LeBron joining Miami means Beal won't get the touches he wants
Beal's focus at this stage of his career may be to redeem his value before his time is up. It's been rough couple of years for him, between being part of the disaster in the Arizona desert then having his latest season cut very prematurely in Hollywood. It would make sense if Beal wants to prove he's still got his fastball, or some of it at least.
Teaming up with LeBron would get in the way of that, as it would mean the ball would be in his hands significantly less. It's not like those opportunities are right there for Beal, but maybe he would think he'd get better chances elsewhere.
Would he get that in Boston? Well, they just traded Jaylen Brown, which has made many question what the pecking order in the offense is after Jayson Tatum. Beal likely wouldn't start for the Celtics, but would give them a bench scorer. In so doing, that could somewhat resurrect his value.
The only way we'll know for sure is seeing where he goes when this is all said and done. For his sake, let's hope it doesn't take all summer long for this to be resolved once and for all. Unfortunately, with no one knowing what LeBron plans to do, that might be how long it takes.
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