Veteran guard Bradley Beal is planning to be back in the fold for the Suns at some point during the club’s ongoing road trip, reports Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link).
The Suns will face the Celtics in Boston on Friday and the Knicks in New York on Sunday before returning to Phoenix.
Beal has been on the shelf with a left hamstring strain for eight games, having last played on March 16 against the Lakers.
The 6’4″ wing has been dogged by health issues for years. He hasn’t appeared in more than 53 games since the 2020/21 season, and hasn’t been available in more than 60 since 2018/19.
This year, Beal has suited up for 48 contests so far, starting 33 of them. At most, he’ll be able to make 54 apperances for the 35-41 Suns.
In his available contests, the 31-year-old is averaging 17.3 PPG, 3.6 APG, 3.4 RPG and 1.0 SPG. He’s also posting an efficient shooting line of .505/.395/.813, but his defensive issues have resulted in him being occasionally benched by first-year head coach Mike Budenholzer.
Chemistry issues between Beal and All-Stars Kevin Durant and Devin Booker have made winning a tough prospect this year in Phoenix. As of this writing, the club occupies the Western Conference’s No. 11 seed and is 1.5 games behind the No. 10-seeded Sacramento for the conference’s final play-in tournament slot.
It’s just not been the same without you Bradley Beal. The most overpaid player in NBA history. Someone gave this clown a no trade clause.
Joel Embiid’s 3/193 is definitely worse
It will be quite interesting to see what kind of contract Beal gets after this current one is blessedly, finally, over with. I don’t think it’ll be a vet minimum, but hopefully it’s not a mid-level exception deal. He’s just not produced at his pay grade since his early years in Washington.
Ted Knox- Beal could care less if any team wants his broken-down body when his contract is over in 2 years, at $55M/yr.
At that point, he will have made $380M over his career.
At 34 years old and filthy rich, Beal is on the beach before he’s playing for the veteran minimum or MLE.
Well said, aristotle.