Bradley Beal will become a restricted free agent
By Andrew Fine
Bradley Beal is set to become a restricted free agent after he and the Washington Wizards decided to hold off extension talks until after the season.
The Washington Wizards and star guard Bradley Beal will not reach a contract extension before Monday’s midnight deadline. However, Beal and the Wizards hope to negotiate and finalize a deal in the offseason.
David Aldridge reported Monday that the two sides will likely try and strike a deal in the offseason.
Wizards, per sources, won’t extend @RealDealBeal23 before deadline. Still hope to sign impact FA in July, then re-sign Beal, who’ll be RFA.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) November 2, 2015
Washington wants to preserve its cap space in order to make a run at a certain superstar who might want to return to his hometown next season.
It has been long rumored that the Wizards are targeting Washington D.C. native Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Durant’s contract will expire this year and the Wizards will be one of the many teams in pursuit of him.
Signing Durant is no guarantee and Washington’s desire to make a run for Durant could hurt Beal if he suffers an injury. Beal has missed 54 regular season games in his three-year NBA career and most recently missed eight games last season due to a right fibula injury.
When healthy Beal has shown that he can be one of the NBA’s best players, especially in the playoffs. In the 2014-2015 playoffs, Beal helped the Wizards reach the Eastern Conference semi-finals, where the team fell to the Atlanta Hawks in six games. In last year’s playoffs, Beal averaged 23.4 points, 4.6 assists, and 5.0 rebounds, keeping the Wizards’ hopes alive after John Wall struggled due to an injury to his left hand.
Beal has picked up where he’s left off, averaging 25.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in 35 minutes per game. He has been especially hot from behind the arc, where he’s shooting 50% (10-20).