Wizards star Bradley Beal will sign with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker’s Suns in a player swap deal that sends Chris Paul to Washington, the well-informed ESPN and The Athletic reported on Sunday. The 29-year-old fullback, three-time All-Star Game selection, will come to form a “Big 3” with very strong offensive potential with Durant and Booker, since he was still averaging 31.5 points in 2020-21 . Last season, he scored 23.2 points per game, with a career-best 51% completion rate, despite missing numerous games due to injuries.
The Suns eliminated in the semi-finals of the Western Conference, during the last play-offs, by the future champion Denver, will have no other ambition than the quest for a first title. “It was an extremely complicated process to finalize, with many hurdles to overcome, but (Wizards owner) Ted Leonsis and (Chairman) Michael Winger have been incredible partners in bringing this project to fruition. We are extremely grateful to them,” said Beal’s agent, Mark Bartelstein.
Phoenix, which may face a salary cap issue with three such stars in addition to DeAndre Ayton, will buy out the last four years of Beal’s contract with the Wizards after playing there for 11 years. This transfer, which will dramatically open the transfer window, also leads to the departure of Landry Shamet in Washington, who will also receive several second draft rounds, specifies ESPN.
