Lakers vs. Clippers – Where Will Bradley Beal Land?

Lakers vs. Clippers – Where Will Bradley Beal Land?

moving forward. All right, real quick, Cappy, let’s talk about Bradley Beal real quick. Okay, so Lindsay and I were discussing this earlier and I wanted to talk about it because um the Lakers are amongst several teams that were included as far as like potential suitors for Bradley Beal. And what I would say is it was Lakers, Clippers. Who are the other teams? Hold on. Lakers, Clippers. I’ll look it up real quick. Yeah, let me know what you got. Yeah, because I’ I’ve heard this stuff and listen, I’m begging the Lakers, please. No. Okay. Well, you may get your wish. Oh, Lakers, Clippers, Warriors, and Bucks were the teams that Bradley Beas quote unquote thought about. Okay. Um I don’t see the Bucks, although there was chatter about the Bucks last year. Um the Warriors, I don’t know. I mean, maybe. Um, the Lakers, I I I don’t love the fit to be honest with you. I don’t think it’s a bad fit because again, their roster is not very good. Like I will give LeBron this. He’s right. The roster is not good. It’s certainly not championship good. U Bradley Beal helps, but I honestly think, you know, and Lindsay, correct me if I’m wrong. I said to you there’s no way he’s not going to the Clippers because they wouldn’t have traded Norman Powell this morning. Yeah, because I read a lot of things that said like, “Oh, well, this deal basically sets up for the Clippers to sign Bradley Beal and I was curious about that because I didn’t realize that like they were really going to buy him out.” Well, think about it. If you’re the Clippers, it’s super smart. You trade Powell, you’re actually hardcaped now, you’re under the first apron, you’re hardcapped at the first apron, you bring in Beal for whatever the buyout number is going to be, which is not a ton. Um, and that’s it. And like you’re good. And then they’re they’re also planning for next year because James, they want to have free agent space, right? They have Kawhai and James Harden avail, you know, potential free agents. They also have the space for a max free agent if they want it. So, here’s here’s my perception. I I like to use that word at times. Yeah. Because I’m not a student of Bradley Beal’s game. Bradley Beal is a in a perfect world, he’s like the third or fourth best player on a championship level team. It did not work out well in Phoenix because there was too much duplication with some of the other players is what I would say. And the rest of their roster was basically at especially early on in his career in Phoenix was basically a G-League roster outside of those three guys. They got some guys like cheap veteran guys who at the end of their career last year and the year before um which was a little better or I’m sorry this year which was a little better but it wasn’t great by any stretch of the imagination. the rest of the roster and the fit just stunk. So, I look back to Bradley Beal’s career and because when I read that the Lakers would be interested in him, I went I don’t feel like that’s a good personality mesh at all. Okay. And I will always go back to when Russell Westbrook was signed by Oh, no. I don’t think of Bradley Beal that way at all. Yeah. No, no, I’m not I’m not saying he’s Russell Westbrook, but I’m just saying this that the celebration for what Russell Westbrook was at the time, and we all know the disaster that it turned into, right? Here’s the thing about Bradley Beal, but but Russell Westbrook, I would say there was reservation. Like I I got I I’ve said this a million times. I got suckered into that because I was not a big proponent of it initially and was talked into it by let’s just say people, okay? and human beings just just people not human or or or pets um not animals real real humans these are not these humans let’s just say like we’re talking me into this okay and these humans that are in the NBA circles were talking me into this because they said oh he could play the Dwayne Wade role and they have similar oh they know how to get to you boy was Ireland one of those people that tried to talk you into it I mean once you say Dwayne Wade you’re And well, but they do have similar games, but I did push back and say, well, you know, Dwayne Wade was an elite level defender for a long long time. Like, you know what I’m saying? And like did he sacrificed a lot of his game to play with LeBron? Um, so like it wasn’t like, you know, I I mean, I’m I’m genuinely curious to see. So, I bought into it literally for eight games and then I remember eight games into it, I said, “This is not going to work.” Like, I don’t care what anybody was trying to sell me earlier. And then that’s when I went full board different direction as we did on the show. But Bradley Beal is not that. I would say I’m not saying that he’s a a disruption the way Westbrook was. He fits what the Lakers need, per se. Um I just think that like he he’s just a I would say it’s more of a band-aid because I don’t think it’s a long-term solution because I don’t know if he wants to be here long term, per se. Bradley Beiel’s in his early 30s, number one. Um, number two, he’s a guy that going back to the 2018ish time, uh, 2017 season, 2018 season. By the way, I looked this up, so this is not because I’ve been watching Bradley Beal. Those two years, 2000 researchers 2017, 2018, he played in all 82 games. That’s impressive. Okay, but it’s also like seven years ago. Since that time, Bradley Beal is a guy who averages about 50 games a year. Yeah. Has not played a lot. Right. Right. So, so for me, when when you don’t play uh look, I realize not everybody can get through 82 games, but if you’re not playing 65 to 70ish kinds of games, I I don’t need that. Number one. Number two, here’s again perception. I don’t perceive Bradley Beal as a player who helps you get to a championship. And look, much of that could be that he was a player in Washington. I mean, he’s okay. Did I miss it? Did I good player? If they add this to this team, I feel like it would certainly elevate their chances of that. I mean, in Washington, it’s not like, you know, I mean, had John Wall with him, but it’s not like they had a ton of anything. They had like an old Paul Pierce that was still pretty good, I guess. Got my boy Gortat, right? Marine Gortat. Yeah. I mean, listen, you remember Cappy when we were breaking down um you know, mind of the game or whatever with uh with JJ and LeBron, you know, the Gortat the Gortat uh cuts, you know what I’m saying? The Gortat screen, sorry. Slot cuts. Um no, different thing. Answer to your question. No, I don’t remember it. Um but when you said Gore, I thought you were talking about those nice I thought you were talking about those nice winter jackets that keep you all really warm. Isn’t that what a gort is? Yeah. No. Is that Is that a different thing? Anyway, whatever. Gortat? I don’t know what that is. I don’t know. Isn’t that like a nice like a nice jacket port screen cappy is a is a thing that is basically a strategy that allows you to exploit the drop coverage. Ah, gotcha. Well, look, uh, Bradley Beal hasn’t played in 82 games since seven years ago. Averages about 50 games. And again, perception, you guys can all knock me and you guys can tell me I’m way wrong and maybe you’ll be proven right. I don’t see him as as a championship guy. I don’t see him as adding to a championship. I don’t see him as a role guy. I see him as a I see him as a big personality and a guy who expects to be a top caliber type of player. And if you guys tell me I’m way wrong, okay, so be it. Yeah, I I don’t know if if he’s got that kind of like Look, I think he thinks at his age um I I will say this, I will agree with you on the the injury thing. Again, the biggest predictor of future injury is past injury. And I don’t I I am genuinely curious to see if he believes that he can be a star in his role um as opposed to a star on the team. Um I don’t know if he’s there yet at 32 years old. Okay. But I I think in theory he should still be able to be closer to he he definitely can be a star in his role. I don’t think there’s any question if he’s willing to do that. um if he can he still be a star that I don’t know because of the availability issues more than anything else. It’s not about his actual game. It’s more about his availability. You’re building my case beautifully. Um and and from a more educated perspective of his game. Can he be a star in his position and in his role? Perhaps. Can he be a star in the team? Probably not. Is he willing to be a star in his role? Not really sure. And so when I have all those kinds of question marks, plus when I look at the number of games that he’s played uh over the last couple of years, I think to myself, not the right guy for the Lakers. But I would say that the he Luca would probably be the best player he’s ever played with. Okay. So I mean, listen, he’s been playing with Booker, he’s been playing with Durant, right? I’m talking about a 36-year-old Kevin Durant and you know, 35 36y old Kevin Durant, not 26 year old Luca Donuch. Okay? If he would have played with Kevin Durant five years ago, then I would have said that’s the best player he’s ever played with. I mean, listen, I I think that one thing the Lakers, and I know that they’ve been criticized and people are not impressed with what they’ve done here uh through free agency because DeAndre Aton is a monster monster question mark. I think the smartest thing that the Lakers have done, even though it’s not very sexy, is the signing of this kid that they got from Sacramento, Jake Laravia, who I don’t know much about this guy, however you want to say it. I don’t even know how to pronounce his name. tomato tomato. Right? Here’s the thing. The one thing about this young guy is is you need bench players. You need 7 8 n deep. You need to look at what Oklahoma City did to win the championship and what Indiana did to get to the championship. You don’t just have five guys and you don’t have anybody on your bench. I I’m with you on that. But I I I think when you look at this team, I think Bradley Beal would help your depth. That’s for sure. And you can you never know. They might be able to do something as far as if Bele was to come off the bench, he can be that spark of the six-man. If not, if that’s not the case, if Vasariza is struggling, they can switch the lineup up. He did that in Phoenix. And and by the way, he didn’t have to do that. He could have pitched a fit about that. He didn’t he didn’t he he did what they thought was best. Kevin Barley Bill does a great job of creating his own shot, but he can be that spot up guy as well. So, he has to be able to accept that role being a spot guy, but his ability to create his own jump shot and take guys off the dribble is is one of a kind, too. And this and the Lakers need, you know, I don’t think it’s going to happen. I think he’s going to the Clippers, but it it’s um because again, you’re not trading Norman Powell in that scenario. The Clippers just didn’t want to pay Norman Powell the three-year extension for 90 million or whatever it was. Um so, you take Beal, who’s cheaper and you think can produce similarly to Norman Powell, um who put up 21 points a game last year. So yeah, like I I think that he’s going to end up a Clipper and he’s going to have a good season with the Clippers and he could have had a good season with the Lakers perhaps, but it’s not I don’t think it’s going to unfold that way. DeAndre, last thought for me. You said it very well. It’s he can be this if he’s willing to accept that role and because there’s a question mark already of will he accept that role. That is for me why I’m out on a player like that. Yeah. And by the way, Jake Lorravia, while I I like the upside to Jake Laravia, I mean, he’s really had one great month in his career. Oh my god, he’s a complete nobody. I mean, he he, you know, first round draft choice, I believe it was, of Memphis and uh and then finds himself, you know, in Sacramento and you look at the numbers and you look at the games that he played and you look at the the the production in terms of stats, he’s a complete nobody. But the Lakers are thinking to themselves, we’re trying to build a little bit of depth. We’re trying to find some guys that come off the bench. I get that. Like, I get it. So do I.

Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal is set to be bought out of his contract to become a free agent, and there are plenty of teams in the NBA that are expected to be interested in the veteran’s services. At the top of the list of suitors are the two Los Angeles Teams – the Lakers and Clippers. Jorge Sedano and Scott Kaplan react on ESPN LA 📲

Catch the Sedano & Kap show weekdays from 3-6PM on YouTube, the ESPN LA app & 710AM Radio.

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