The Phoenix Suns may consider waiving and stretching Bradley Beal’s contract, which would put them in almost the exact same position the Milwaukee Bucks found themselves in with Damian Lillard. Lillard had $113 million remaining over the course of two years, and Beal has almost $111 million remaining in his last two years—the numbers are almost identical.
Should the Suns choose to waive and stretch the contract, they would be paying over $22 million per year for the next five years, just to get Beal off the team. It would be a black cloud hanging over the franchise’s head for the foreseeable future, but at this point, it could be necessary.
It’s just a complete and utter mess.
Bradley Beal and Damian Lillard situations are awful
The Suns and Bucks put themselves in these situations. And both could end up getting out of it by putting their teams in awful financial situations for years to come. They’re set to have over $22 million on the books every year for the next five—all of which is dead money.
Effectively, they’re paying a Derrick White, Dillon Brooks, of Jarrett Allen to play for their team, without actually getting the player on the team. They are paying the price of those three guys just so Beal and Lillard will suit up against them instead of play for them.
That alone is disgusting.
But the fact that both teams also ruined their rosters by adding those two players is what makes the current-day situation so much worse.
For the Bucks, it was swapping out Jrue Holiday for Lillard, but also sending out the draft capital that was included in the deal. Holiday was the defensive glue that held the Bucks together, and to make matters worse, he joined their rival and helped them win a title.
For the Suns, it was trading for Beal before giving Chris Paul a real shot to lead the Devin Booker and Kevin Durant-led Suns. There were too many cooks in the kitchen, and it led to Durant dipping and Beal being one of the worst contracts in the NBA.
Bradley Beal situation isn’t as bad as Damian Lillard
Though the literal cuts are nearly identical, the Suns aren’t in quite as bad a situation as the Bucks are in (even though neither team has control of their own draft assets moving forward).
At least the Suns have some young players to look forward to in terms of development. With Jalen Green, Mark Williams, Khaman Maluach, Ryan Dunn, and Rasheer Fleming, they have a decent young core around Booker.
Milwaukee has Kyle Kuzma, Myles Turner, Kevin Porter Jr., and Gary Trent Jr. next to Giannis Antetokounmpo, and they’re trying to win.
Both situations are a mess, and the Beal and Lillard issues are very similar, but the Suns are in a much better position roster-wise.