Not only did the Washington Wizards give Bradley Beal a 5-year, $251 million contract, they decided to bid against themselves and sweeten the pot. They also included a no-trade clause, a 15 percent trade kicker, and a player option in his final season.
As I explained in this week’s Bleav in Wizards podcast and will attempt to do here to some degree, this is some next-level self-sabotage. They should have been negotiating from somewhat of a position of strength because only they could give Beal the full amount of money he wanted. Worst-case scenario, they could have signed and traded him for minimal assets.