The fading fantasy of Beal for Butler 

As the days go by, it’s becoming increasingly clear that what we’ve suspected all along is true: the Miami Heat don’t want Bradley Beal.

The Phoenix Suns need a jolt. Badly. A kick in the ass. A push in the back. But if you’re waiting for it to come from within, don’t hold your breath. This roster seems incapable of using its growing collection of humiliating losses as fuel. Self-reflection? Nonexistent. Pride? A ghost. They’re floundering in the muck, seemingly content to sink deeper rather than claw their way out.

So, naturally, it falls to management to save the day.

The swirling “Jimmy Butler wants Phoenix” rumors have been the talk of the town. And why not? Butler is the antidote to this team’s glaring deficiencies. Grit, fire, and the kind of attitude that makes opponents flinch? Yeah. That’ Butler ball. The Suns could use a heavy dose of that.

But getting him here? That’s the kicker. Butler in purple and orange is a dream scenario that hinges on two massive “ifs”: Bradley Beal waiving his no-trade clause and the Miami Heat actually wanting him. Right now, it looks like neither of those pieces is falling into place.

Marc Stein threw cold water on the whole idea in his latest trade rumor buffet, laying out the grim reality for anyone still clinging to hope:

“It is also a misnomer to suggest that the Suns, whose interest in trading for Butler is absolutely genuine, only need Bradley Beal to waive his no-trade clause to successfully relocate the face of Heat Culture for the past half-decade. The Heat would also have to be willing to swap Butler for Beal, and there is scant evidence in circulation to suggest that they are.

Beal is a $50 million player this season, has two seasons left on his contract worth $110 million, and has missed 36% of his games as a Sun across a season-and-change in the desert. Phoenix, furthermore, cannot aggregate contracts in any trade, holds no control over its first-round draft pick for the next six years, and has only one future first-round pick (2031) and three second-rounders to package with Beal in a Butler trade offer.”

Here in the Valley, we’ve long known the cold, hard truth. That the Butler-in, Beal-out fantasy is exactly that: a pipe dream. The idea of a one-for-one swap, with maybe a veteran minimum contract tossed in from Miami to grease the wheels, is clever on paper. But even that workaround feels like a loophole more fit for a law school hypothetical than an actual NBA trade.

If Phoenix has any hope of pulling this off, it’s going to take a third team swooping in like a Christmas miracle. And let’s be real. Getting that third team to even bat an eyelash at Bradley Beal is about as likely as Clark Griswold’s 25,000 twinkling lights actually working on the first try. No drumroll, please…

But let’s say the stars align. Let’s say some poor, desperate franchise sees something in Beal’s $50-million-a-year price tag and fragile durability. Even then, it all comes down to the biggest sticking point: that ironclad no-trade clause. A clause so rare it’s the NBA’s unicorn, a privilege shared by exactly two players. Bradley Beal and LeBron James.

Sure, we’ll keep our ears to the CB radio, tuning in for any whispers of trade rumors, teams desperate enough to take on the worst contract in the NBA, and any external solutions to this Suns debacle. But deep down, we know the truth. It’s going to take more than a crowd of New Yorkers belting out “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” to push the sleigh of a Beal or Butler trade over the line and into the air. And fixing this thing internally? Humbug.

So, we wait, watching the Suns flounder, hoping for a miracle that feels as likely as Santa dropping Butler down the chimney.