James Jones: Suns never discussed trade with Bradley Beal

In the lead-up to the trade deadline, speculation swirled for more than a month that the Phoenix Suns might approach Bradley Beal to seek his approval for a trade.

This was necessary due to Beal holding one of the NBA’s only two negotiated no-trade clauses, a privilege he shares with LeBron James.

However, Suns General Manager James Jones firmly dismissed those rumors, stating no such conversation ever took place with Beal.

“We didn’t have any discussions with Brad about the no-trade clause,” Jones clarified. “That’s one thing I can say for sure because that’s been a big topic of discussion.”

There had been interest from Jimmy Butler, who reportedly hoped to secure a move to Phoenix before the trade deadline.

This scenario would have required Beal to greenlight a trade to a third team, but Jones noted that negotiations never progressed far enough to engage Beal.

Ultimately, Butler was traded to the Golden State Warriors instead, bringing the speculation to a close.