The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson revealed what a potential package for Bradley Beal could look like for the Miami Heat.
Jackson explained that the Heat could make the deal work salary wise by trading away guard Kyle Lowry and sharpshooter Duncan Robinson, or the team could attach Victor Oladipo and another piece to Lowry to make things work financially.
Beal, a three-time All-Star with the Washington Wizards, appears to be on his way out with the team potentially looking to rebuild.
Package discussed by Heat would be built around Lowry, with either Robinson OR Vic and another cap facilitating piece (Jovic and Highsmith would work). Number of draft picks is a question. https://t.co/W5FeqFVcEo
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) June 17, 2023
The Heat would obviously have to part ways with some draft capital to make this deal happen, but there is another wrinkle in this deal that works in Miami’s favor.
Beal has a no-trade clause in his contract, which means he can veto any trade to a team that he doesn’t want to be a part of. That works in Miami’s favor since the team reportedly is a finalist for Beal in a potential deal.
This means Miami only has to outbid other teams that Beal would like to go to, which could help the team keep core pieces such as Tyler Herro in any potential trade scenario.
While losing draft picks would hurt, the Heat could make the sacrifice to get a scorer of Beal’s caliber on the roster for multiple seasons. The 29-year-old is under contract through the 2025-26 season and has a player option for the 2026-27 campaign.
Lowry, who is entering the last season of his contract, is certainly an expendable piece for Miami after taking a backseat to Gabe Vincent in the 2022-23 season. The aging Lowry simply doesn’t compare to Beal with his production recently.
During the 2022-23 season, Beal appeared in 50 games for the Wizards. It was the fourth time in four seasons that he failed to eclipse 60 games.
However, when he was on the floor, he was extremely effective this season – shooting his best percentage from the field of his career (50.6 percent). The three-time All-Star finished the season averaging 23.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game.
Adding another player that can score consistently would certainly take some pressure off Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo for Miami. With Herro hurt in the playoffs in the 2022-23 campaign, Miami relied much more on role players like Vincent and Caleb Martin on a nightly basis.
If the Heat can swing a deal for Beal similar to the one Jackson predicted, then it would be a massive win for the franchise this offseason.
