After securing the bag in D.C., All-Star guard Bradley Beal endured years of mediocre play before finally landing a new gig with a brand new team. This time, unlike his previous stint, Beal is in a position to win in the playoffs and expectations couldn’t be higher with him, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant.
On Sunday, fans finally get the first look at Beal in Suns gear as he was formally introduced and welcomed to the team in a viral video:
For Beal, this marks the start of a new era. While he will no longer be the top dog, he’ll be playing an important role in the offense and should get a lot of clean looks playing alongside so much star power.
For the fans, many expressed optimism about the fresh start, but there is still a level of cautious optimism when thinking about the future:
Despite being among the top-performing teams in the West, the Suns have yet to win an NBA championship. After carrying the franchise to the Finals in 2021, Devin Booker and Chris Paul were unable to capture the same magic again.
This past season, CP3 slowed down drastically and it became clear in the postseason that he was a liability for them on both ends of the floor.
Now, with Beal, the Suns have another scorer in the backcourt who can take pressure off Book and KD offensively. Going forward, Phoenix is expected to continue making trades, but young big man Deandre Ayton is unlikely to be included in any of them…
Suns Reveal Their Plans For Ayton
As the biggest trade chip remaining in Phoenix, Deandre Ayton was widely expected to find a new home this summer. But after much deliberation, and some discussions with new head coach Frank Vogel, the Suns prefer to just keep Ayton around.
“Phoenix Suns are moving forward with the plan of keeping Deandre Ayton to play alongside Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, league sources tell,” Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report writes.
Team owner Mat Ishbia isn’t playing any games with his team. Since day one, he’s been all-in on building a contender and a wrong move now could jeopardize everything they’ve built so far. Hopefully, Bradley Beal is the answer they’ve been looking for because they really don’t have many other options left…
