Washington Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal will carefully consider his future ahead of a pivotal offseason that could reshape his career.
The sharpshooter said he has thought about potentially taking an extension from the franchise, but will keep his eyes open wide for a huge free-agency period that could change it all:
“I have thought about it but I haven’t really full-out processed it,” he said, in an interview at the Barker Hangar following his award presentation on Monday, according to Ben Golliver of The Washington Post. “I still have two years left. We just drafted Rui [Hachimura] and I want to see what we do in free agency before I make the ultimate decision. I haven’t even been offered it officially. Until that happens, I’ll wait and think about it. I’ll have an ample amount of time to process everything and make a decision when the time is right.”
Beal has expressed interest in remaining in Washington D.C. for the rest of his career, but the situation is much murkier now that John Wall could miss the entire 2019-20 season and Otto Porter Jr. was dealt to the Chicago Bulls before the last trade deadline:
“I’d be naive to say I wouldn’t be [interested in extension talks]. Washington is where I’ve been the last seven years, going on eight. It would be great to play in one place forever. But at the same time, you want to win and make sure you’re in a position to do so. I’m definitely going to evaluate who we hire as the GM and who we pick up on the team. All that plays a factor.”
The GM hire is indeed a huge indicator of what could happen next. If Beal is traded to another team, he would be wise to opt out of his contract and fish out the most money he could command as a free agent in 2020.
Beal will make $27.1 million this upcoming season as part of his five-year, $127 million extension, but could make more than $38 million per year in his next deal if he chose to become a free agent.
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