Subscribe
Follow Us
Bradley Beal's divorce from the Phoenix Suns is no longer a question of “if” but of “when.” After trading away Kevin Durant in a circuitous transaction that involved a total of seven NBA clubs, Phoenix and Beal are rumored to be on their way to a buyout.
If so, Beal will become a free agent and can sign with another team. If he's got the Miami Heat on his list, he may have to cross that team out following the big trade that took place Monday morning.
The Heat acquired shooting guard Norman Powell in a three-team swap with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Utah Jazz. The Clippers get big man John Collins from the Jazz, who receive Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson plus an LA second-rounder in 2027. For Miami, it negatively impacts the team's capabilities to win a potential Bradley Beal sweepstakes.
“By making this trade, the Heat have limited themselves financially since they are now hard-capped at the first apron,” noted NBA insider Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. “This means the Heat are unable to use their full MLE, thus making a path to Bradley Beal tough without trading other players. Miami is likely out on Beal.”
Prior to the blockbuster trade, the Heat had around $11.1 million in cap space before hitting the first apron, and they also could have still used their full mid-level exception worth $14.1 million to sign Beal in case of a buyout. With Powell coming over, they will be paying his salary of $20.482 million in the 2025-26 NBA season.
Meanwhile, Love and Anderson have $4.15 million and $9.65 million in salaries, respectively, for the following campaign, before they hit the free agent market in 2026.
There will still be ways available for the Heat to acquire Beal once he becomes a free agent, but the recent transaction with the Jazz and the Clippers just may suggest that Miami no longer intends to go after the three-time NBA All-Star, who hasn't played in more than 60 games in any of the past six seasons.
In any case, the Heat get a reliable perimeter threat and an athletic finisher in Powell, who averaged a career-high 21.8 points per game with the Clippers in the 2024-25 campaign.
