3 goals for the Phoenix Suns’ Bradley Beal for the 2023-24 season.
1. Be named an All-Star for the fourth time.
Being named an All-Star once more may seem superficial, but it is the meaning behind that nod which is the most important aspect here. The last time Beal was an All-Star was back in 2020-21, and since then his popularity to fans has dwindled because he played for a team in Washington that nobody really cared about.
So to come out of that situation, and make it back to the All-Star game, all in year one, would represent a huge move in the right direction. It would also likely mean that Beal is shooting at or above the 37.2 percent from deep he has managed for his career to date, which would be massive to the Suns if they plan on winning it all.
Really though it is hard for teams to have three All-Stars in a season. We look back on the four that the 60 win Atlanta Hawks team managed in 2014-15 and cringe. Contending teams generally have two players make the midseason exhibition, so if Beal was to be there, one of two fantastic things will have happened (assuming as well that there are no injuries).
The first is that Beal is playing so well in his new role that he is undeniable. If the Suns are rolling and he’s putting up close to 30 again on some scorching nights from deep, then there will be no choice than to get him into the game. Especially if the Suns find themselves top of the Western Conference.
Or else Beal has leapfrogged one of Durant or Booker in production, or dare we even say popularity, and so replaces one of them for the game. That may sound like a negative, but imagine how well Beal would have to be playing, and how quickly he would have had to have settled, for that to be the case.
That would in turn create competition internally, each star pushing the other to greater heights. Most of all, it would be vindication that Beal is the player he’s always thought he was and is capable of being. He has been put into a situation where he can thrive, and showing that in year one with a return to the All-Star game would be a great way to begin this chapter of his career.