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The Phoenix Suns' reported consideration of waiving and stretching Bradley Beal's contract faces significant obstacles due to previous roster moves and collective bargaining agreement limitations. The Suns would need Beal to surrender $13.8 million to execute the plan.

Local reports suggested Phoenix might waive-and-stretch Beal's remaining $110 million contract to avoid the second apron threshold. The move would spread his cap hit to approximately $22 million annually over five years instead of two.

The collective bargaining agreement limits stretched money to 15 percent of each season's salary cap. With the 2025-26 cap projected at $154.6 million, Beal's stretched amount would consume 14.3 percent alone.

Phoenix's August 2024 decisions to waive and stretch Nassir Little and E.J. Liddell now complicate the Beal scenario. The two players will cost the Suns $3.8 million in dead money during 2025-26.

Combined with Beal's hypothetical stretched money, Phoenix would exceed the 15 percent threshold by $2.7 million annually. This forces the Suns to require Beal's cooperation in reducing his contract value.

League executives estimate Beal's free agent value near the mid-level exception, starting at $14.1 million for 2025-26. However, sources indicate Beal prefers stability for his family situation.

The financial gap between his current deal and market value creates an unlikely scenario for voluntary contract reduction. Beal would need to surrender significant guaranteed money with uncertain compensation prospects.

Phoenix previously struggled to find trade partners willing to absorb Beal's contract. The waive-and-stretch option appears equally challenging without major concessions from the veteran guard.

Via Fred Katz/The Athletic

Saw this coming a mile away. They should never have traded for him. Stupid then, paying the price now.

How in the ages an owner, a GM, an asistant, the P of B operations and their assistantns ever decided not to trade for him if he kept his NTC?????

Can they still just buy him out
without stretching him? Is the restriction limited to stretched money?

the_process wrote:Can they still just buy him out
without stretching him? Is the restriction limited to stretched money?

You can buy him out, but that defeats the point of reducing current cap number and limiting 2nd apron exposure.

this must be the worst conctract in nba history. in terms of the impact it had on teams.

aside from the massive number and beal underperforming. The NTC and him deliberately using it made it so hard to work with that contract. i have never seen something similar before.

yea there were people like eddy curry, jerome james, etc. the classics. they all were bad contract for sure. but at least someone took them as expirings and cap dump eventually. cant even do that with beal. he seems happy in phoenix

ecuhus1981 wrote:

the_process wrote:Can they still just buy him out
without stretching him? Is the restriction limited to stretched money?

You can buy him out, but that defeats the point of reducing current cap number and limiting 2nd apron exposure.

Well Beal has zero incentive to agree to give money back. So stretching him is out.

They're back to trying to find a trade somewhere he will go? That didn't work out last deadline.

This should teach teams to never give NTCs. Only the elite of the elite should ever even be considered for one, and then only if you absolutely have to.

Tell him to either give up 15 million and get stretched or to sit at home the next two years. That's it. Those are the options.

This trade cost the Suns Durant and the funny thing is he was for it to.

BeesKneesCs wrote:Tell him to either give up 15 million and get stretched or to sit at home the next two years. That's it. Those are the options.

If you plan for him to sit at home for two years you should do the full buyout and get the roster spot back.

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