$250 million in 5 years, the NBA's biggest salary bastard! Durant, it's time to say goodbye to the championship
More than half of this season's NBA regular season schedule has been played, and the situation in the West is clear and clear, with four major groups: championship group Thunder + Timberwolves + Clippers + Nuggets, spoiler group: Kings + Suns + Pelicans + Mavericks, playoffs fringe group: Lakers + Jazz + Rockets + Warriors, and bad group: Grizzlies + Trail Blazers + Spurs. The Lakers and Warriors are in the third group, in fact, it is not surprising, as they get older, the dominance of James and Curry is declining, but both of them are very systematic players, James likes to match the spatial interior + pitcher 3D; Curry has always wanted to maintain the unique passing and cutting system of Klay and Green. But in reality, when these two can't continue to play effectively, both the Lakers and the Warriors become very vulnerable.
Compared with the successful Clippers of the Rapid Northern Expedition, the Suns' performance in the first half of this season is hardly satisfactory. Won 28 of the first 49 games. This also includes two waves of seven straight wins, from mid-November to the end of November last year, and from mid-January to the end of January this year. The Suns' Big Three, Durant averaged 28.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game this season, Booker averaged 28.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game, and Beal averaged 17.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. However, the team had the worst offensive efficiency in the league in the final quarter of this season, the worst in the league in net loss over 100 possessions in the final quarter, and even set a new all-time record for the worst net win in the final quarter since the NBA began statistics!
Let's start with the Big Three, Bill. Beal has missed 24 games this season with a back injury + ankle injury. After a series of injuries, he only started playing in consecutive games since 24 years. But look at Beal's efficiency: 17.1 points and 4.6 assists per game, 48% + 32.4% shooting rate in two shots, 53% effective shooting rate, 203rd in the league, 55.9% true shooting rate, 220th in the league! and Beal is relatively close to Brogton of the Trail Blazers in terms of efficiency value and data, how much is Brogton? 45 million dollars in 2 years! And Beal's contract with the Wizards in the summer of 22 is 5 years and 251 million US dollars! The salary this season is $46.74 million, and the salary for the next three years is $50.2 million + $53.67 million + $57.13 million, with a player option in the final year!
The key is also the trade veto! Last summer, when the Wizards were about to send Beal away, Beal said that if he didn't go to the Suns, he would exercise the trade veto! Of course, in order to join the Suns, Beal also made concessions: give up 15% of the trade margin. During Beal's time with the Wizards, he averaged more than 30 points per game in the 19-20 season, including the 20-21 season, but in the past two seasons due to injuries, he averaged 23 points and 6 assists per game. First of all, his efficiency value has not been high, and like small guards such as Trae Young and Mitchell, he relies on gorgeous statistics such as high ball possession. Second, Beal is used to being the boss with the Wizards, and he lacks a defensive attitude. The most important thing is that he can't control the ball reasonably at all, and the assist-to-turnover ratio this season is 1.9, a career average, and the level of 150 in the league!
In order to cover up Beal's shortcomings and various shortcomings, the burden of Booker and Durant has increased. Booker transitioned to point guard this season, averaging 7.2 assists per game, but with an assist ratio of only 22.4, 73rd in the league. It can be intuitively understood that in 100 rounds, Booker effectively delivered assists. This is generally on the lower side. The key is that since entering 24 years, Booker has scored 62 points against the Pacers and 44 points against the Magic, and he no longer wants to lead his teammates, but regains his No. 1 output position. And Durant is also trying to lead his teammates, but with an average of 5.8 assists + 3.1 turnovers per game, Durant is not a playmaker at all! And Booker is eighth in the league in average minutes per game, and Durant is third in the league in average minutes per game. Both of them are expending 120% of their energy to make up for Bill's shortcomings.
I remember that after the Beal trade was reached last summer, the Suns reporter Larkin revealed that the Suns were initially hesitant about sending Paul in exchange for Beal. But Durant and Booker contributed to Beal's quick signing, and even Suns management couldn't wait for free agency to open up to reach out to Harden. Perhaps, in Durant's view, Beal, like his former good brother Irving, has unreasonable finishing ability, a typical representative of stick singles, and Booker and himself are the same kind of people. The super-personal heroism that Durant yearns for, he single-handedly changed his life. Durant has also expressed frustration when Beal has been injured in a row, but is adamant that the team will quickly get back on track when Beal returns. But the result?
It must be said that Beal is really the biggest salary bastard in the NBA. The key is that the Suns can't send it away at all, and Beal has the right to veto the trade! Secondly, Durant and Booker's current style of play, whether they can survive the playoffs in health is a question, Durant not only has to take on the task of protecting the frame, but also has to shoulder the responsibility of organization, but also to ensure his stable output, so that the Suns have a chance to win. In the end, even if the Suns successfully enter the playoffs, the result will be the same as last season, and at the end, there will be Booker and Durant left, and no one else can count on it, and the Suns' defense will be a mess again this season! Durant, it's time to say goodbye to the championship, because Beal will be with you for at least 4 years. If he doesn't leave, where can you go?