The Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers are interested in Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN explained in “The Jump” that both teams want to get involved in a possible business, but it will boil down to whether or not they have enough assets.
“The Lakers and Clippers would love to get involved. But what matters is that the draft choices are made. Beal will have a say on where he is going because of his contract” – @wojespn #NBA #NBATwitter #The jump #DCAboveAll https://t.co/uynQZd5ZR5
– The Jump on ESPN (@NBATheJump) January 28, 2021
Beal has this season and next year remaining on his contract with the Wizards.
He also has a player option for the 2022-23 season that is worth more than $ 37 million.
Clearly, the acquisition of Beal will require a lot of assets, but both the Lakers and Clippers have negotiated draft choices in recent years.
The Lakers gave up three choices in the first round when they switched to Anthony Davis, and the Clippers switched to three of their own players in the first round (five in total) in Paul George’s switch.
Needless to say, the two teams lack the resources to make a realistic deal for Beal.
The Wizards are only 3-11 this season. They switched to Russell Westbrook during the off-season, but the deal did not go as they expected.
The team also faced a series of injuries and an outbreak of COVID-19 this season.
Beal is having another great year, but he may feel that he is wasting his best time staying in Washington.
If Beal forced his way out, the Lakers and Clippers would certainly be involved, but they are unlikely to be able to invoke the best offer for Beal.
This season, Beal averages 35.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.