Wizards Expected To Offer Bradley Beal A Max Contract
BOSTON (CBS) -- It appears another potential offseason target for the Boston Celtics will be off the market.
According to The Washington Post, the Washington Wizards plan on giving Bradley Beal a max contract when he becomes a restricted free agent on July 1.
Barring a drastic development, Beal won't have to shop around. The Wizards are expected to offer Beal a five-year deal for the maximum amount allowed under the salary cap as soon as the free agent negotiating period kicks off on July 1, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Based on the $92 million salary cap projection teams are working with, a max contract would pay Beal $23 million next season because he could earn up to 25 percent of the cap amount as a four-year veteran.
Beal can receive max offers from any team, but the Wizards can match any deal because of his restricted free agent status. They also own Beal's Bird Rights, allowing them to offer the most amount of money.
Beal to the Celtics was unlikely to begin with, given restricted free agents rarely change teams, but there was the potential of him moving if Kevin Durant decided to head to D.C. to play for his hometown Wizards, eating a good chunk of their available funds in the process. But now, with the Thunder one game away from the NBA Finals, it appears Durant is staying put.
Beal, a four-year shooting guard, would be an intriguing option for any team this summer given he won't turn 23 until next month. There are some injury concerns with Beal, but he has an extremely high offensive ceiling, averaging a career-high 17.4 points per game over 55 games during the 2015-16 season. He has averaged 16 points per game on 43 percent shooting since being the third overall pick in 2012.
The Post notes that a sign-and-trade is still possible, which the Celtics certainly have the assets to pull off, but that route is unlikely. So it appears another potential (but unlikely) option for the Celtics this offseason has become an extreme longshot.
