2. Bradley Beal – $46.7 million
It seems harsh to land a player here who is yet to play a single minute for the franchise, but such is the makeup of this roster. Bradley Beal was not somebody who fans thought was attainable as a trade target to begin the offseason, and everybody is delighted that he is in The Valley.
That doesn’t change the fact that the sixth highest paid player in the entire league in 2023-24, and at 30-years-old he has never even made a Conference Finals. A three-time All-Star in 10 years with the Washington Wizards, how quickly will fans want more out of Beal?
Again context is key here, and the Suns only got Beal because he had a no-trade clause in his current deal which he waived in order to get the move that he wanted. Moving on from an ageing Paul for Beal is like turning water into wine. But in today’s league, it is also entirely possible, if not actually likely, that the Suns could have landed the next disgruntled star to come along.
After all, they continue to get linked to James Harden even after adding Beal. By the time 2026-27 rolls around, Beal will be nearing his mid-thirties and will have picked up a player option for over $57 million.
The Suns may not even be contenders by that point, and Durant is likely to be retired or playing elsewhere. Again, this is a lot of money for a player who hasn’t had one signature postseason moment to call his own (all of his modest playoff success came alongside John Wall), and who will become harder to trade under the new CBA.