If Bradley Beal reaches a buyout with the Suns, the LA Clippers are favored to sign him, potentially adding him to a lineup with Harden, Leonard, Collins, and Zubac.
If Bradley Beal finalizes a contract buyout with the Phoenix Suns, the Los Angeles Clippers are expected to be the frontrunners to sign him, according to Law Murray, Dan Woike, and Fred Katz of The Athletic.
3-pointers this season
Los Angeles Clippers
NBA
Should Beal join the LA Clippers, he'd potentially slot into a starting lineup alongside James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, John Collins, and Ivica Zubac. The team cleared a path for this possibility by trading Norman Powell to the Miami Heat.
The Clippers can offer Beal up to $5.3 million for the 2025–26 season, using the remaining portion of their $14.1 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Most of that exception was previously used to sign center Brook Lopez.
As of Tuesday, Beal and the Suns were still negotiating the terms of a buyout. However, both sides reportedly remain optimistic it will happen, per The Athletic.
Beal has two years and $110.8 million left on his contract. If the Suns choose to waive him, they can stretch his remaining salary over five seasons—resulting in roughly $19.4 million in dead cap annually through the 2029–30 season.
Due to a rule in the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, Beal would have to give back at least $13.8 million in a buyout for the Suns to use the stretch provision.
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Beal has also considered the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and Milwaukee Bucks as possible destinations, The Athletic reports.
He originally signed a five-year, $251 million contract with the Washington Wizards in 2022, which included a rare no-trade clause. The Suns acquired him from Washington in the summer of 2023.
Phoenix failed to win a single postseason game during Beal's tenure. They were swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and missed the postseason entirely last season.
In the 2024–25 season, Beal averaged 17.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game, while shooting 49.7% from the field and 38.6% from three-point range.
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