{"id":71115,"date":"2025-07-17T23:10:13","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T23:10:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/71115\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T23:10:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T23:10:13","slug":"guard-got-away-from-identity-with-suns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/71115\/","title":{"rendered":"Guard got away from identity with Suns"},"content":{"rendered":"

There wasn\u2019t just one reason why Bradley Beal wasn\u2019t a fit in Phoenix.<\/p>\n

Various injuries, a thin roster and constant coaching turnover were just a few of the nagging issues that plagued the Suns<\/a> during Beal\u2019s two seasons here.<\/p>\n

Beal\u2019s play (when healthy) also took a hit throughout his Phoenix tenure, a byproduct of not being able to be himself, according to his agent Mark Bartelstein.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe big part of the problem is that Brad got away from his identity and who he is as a player,\u201d Bartelstein told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda.com<\/a>. \u201cBrad made a lot of sacrifices in his individual game with all good intentions to help the team be successful. But it took him away from what he does best, which also led itself to the team not playing as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is always going to play the right way. He\u2019s always going to be selfless,\u201d he added. \u201cBut if you have Brad Beal on your team, you have to let him be Brad Beal. Otherwise, it doesn\u2019t make sense and you\u2019re not getting the best version of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two seasons of underperformances, however, wasn\u2019t the nail in the coffin that solidified Beal\u2019s reported buyout with the franchise.<\/p>\n

That was decided after the Kevin Durant trade, Bartelstein said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe came to the conclusion after looking at all the things, their trade with Houston and looking forward, the right thing for us would be to turn the page and go to a different spot where he would be a huge point of emphasis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN<\/a>, if Durant would have accepted a trade to Minnesota where the Suns would have received a center like Rudy Gobert instead of a guard like Jalen Green, there could have been a path for Beal to return to the Suns.<\/p>\n

That deal never came to fruition and at that point, the writing was on the wall.<\/p>\n

Still, the Suns had made attempts to trade Beal in the middle of the year last year and moving off his contract in anyway possible was always a consideration for Phoenix.<\/p>\n

Among the biggest hangups in getting Beal off the roster centered around his no-trade clause. With that in play, it forced the Suns to ultimately reach a buyout.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a no-trade clause for a reason. It was to make sure that Brad could choose where he wanted to play. That was the whole purpose of the no-trade clause \u2013 to choose where he could play,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Another twist in the process was the familial battle between Bartelstein and his son Josh, the CEO of the Suns.<\/p>\n

Mark, however, downplayed the unique circumstance, adding he and Josh knew \u201chow to handle it the right way.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot of things that we have to deal with, and you work through. Josh wasn\u2019t just involved. It was (owner) Mat Ishbia, (GM) Brian Gregory and (head coach) Jordan Ott. There were collective conversations among everybody to get to the right place. It\u2019s never normal when you\u2019re dealing with your son. But we know how to handle it the right way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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