The Phoenix Suns and Bradley Beal experiment has gone about as wrong as it could get. Although the Suns traded for Beal two seasons ago, many have felt that is has been two agonizing seasons.

After being swept in the 2024 first round, one season later, they missed the playoffs entirely. With some of the unknowns regarding Beal's no-trade clause, it's only adding more concern to that fire.

ESPN's Bobby Marks detailed what the Suns need to do to fix the roster mess with Beal.

Phoenix cannot waive Beal and then stretch his salary over the next five seasons,” Marks said. “Because team salaries of waived and stretched players cannot exceed 15% of the salary cap, the Suns are not allowed to incur that $22 million hit this season.

“A workable solution might be reaching a buyout that reduces the amount owed from $111 million to $90 million. The Suns were at their worst on both ends of the court with Beal this season. His minus-11.7 net rating is the worst in the NBA among 239 players with at least 1,000 minutes played this season.”

Bradley Beal's time with the Suns was rough

Although his statistics back up his impact, the fit was never there. Not to mention, injuries plagues Beal for the past two seasons. It didn't allow the team to gel, as well as Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.

Article Continues Below
More Phoenix Suns News
Cooper Flagg in a Phoenix Suns jersey, and Devin Booker in a Dallas Mavericks jersey. There are question marks around both players, and there is the NBA Draft logo in the background
Grading ESPN’s Suns-Mavericks trade proposal with Devin Booker, Cooper FlaggHayden Cilley ·
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) controls the ball as Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) defends during the third quarter at American Airlines Center.
NBA rumors: ESPN suggests Suns-Mavericks trade swapping Cooper Flagg pick, Devin BookerPreston Byers ·
image thumbnail
Former top Nets assistant among finalists for Suns head coach positionErik Slater ·
Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia watches a game against the New Orleans Pelicans in the second quarter at Footprint Center.
Suns narrow head coach search to two finalistsBrett Siegel ·
timberwolves, anthony edwards, kevin durant, timberwolves trade
3 trades Minnesota Timberwolves must make to win 2026 NBA title with Anthony EdwardsGarrett Kerman ·
Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) gestures to the referee for a foul call against the Toronto Raptors in the second half at Scotiabank Arena.
Suns rumors: Coaching search ‘reinforcing’ Kevin Durant trade plansTroy Finnegan ·

The presumed “Big 3” wasn't too big, and didn't have a chance to showcase their collective abilities for a full season. There were glimpses of it, but nothing too consistent.

A 36-46 record wasn't what they ordered. Still, there are plenty of questions surrounding the team, that don't pertain to just Beal. Some of those are involving Durant, and the Phoenix head coach, Mike Budenholzer.

However, moving off of Beal's contract would provide the team with way more cap flexibility. They would be out of the first and second tax aprons, which opens up a variety of possibilities.

They still wouldn't be able to get their draft picks back, but they could focus on retooling the team around Booker.

Either way, the last two years have been disappointing, and many have pointed to Beal as the culprit. If his contract and no-trade clause weren't as staining as they have been, this would be a different conversation.

Although Beal gave a sobering take on his future with the Suns, it's still unknown. However, that $50+ million per year and no-trade clause have left a sour taste in the mouths of Suns fans everywhere.