Agent Bartelstein and the Strange Family Dynamic Amidst the Beal Drama
Mark and Josh Bartelstein have heard the same joke hundreds of times. The situation with player X, the family barbecue, the vacation, everything will be weird, right? Sometimes, reality surpasses the simplest comedy. On Wednesday, veteran agent Mark Bartelstein finalized a $99 million contract buyout agreement with his son, Josh Bartelstein, CEO of the Phoenix Suns, for his star client, Bradley Beal. This ended a saga that stretched for months. On Thursday, they will celebrate Josh’s 36th birthday in Chicago. This weekend, a big Bartelstein family wedding will take place, as Mark’s daughter and Josh’s sister, Courtney, will marry her fiancé, Max. Yes, there will be some jokes when I take the microphone. My mom and my grandmas will love it. After the wedding, Mark Bartelstein is expected to finalize a contract for Beal to join the Los Angeles Clippers in a two-year, $11 million deal, according to reports. This completes a spectacular offseason for the team and ends two disastrous years for the Suns and Beal. Beal’s departure from Phoenix unfolded in three acts.Act 1: Ott’s Plan and Beal’s Decision
After new head coach Jordan Ott was hired in early June, he met with Beal and presented him with a plan for his use in the upcoming season. Beal was coming off a season where his usage rate was the lowest of his career, with a diminished role under former coach Mike Budenholzer.Despite his decent stats, averaging 17 points and nearly 50% overall efficiency, the production didn’t match expectations or his maximum salary of $50 million. Ott indicated that the Suns hadn’t completely given up on the idea of Beal returning next season. However, after postseason meetings with Bartelstein, Beal decided he needed to leave Phoenix if the opportunity arose.
We couldn’t risk another lost year. This decision was about basketball. Bradley wants to play in big games and in big moments.
Mark Bartelstein
Act 2: Durant’s Departure and the Uncertain Future
On June 22, the Suns agreed to trade Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets. In return, they received Jalen Green, whom the Suns considered a new cornerstone alongside Devin Booker.Before accepting the Rockets’ offer, the Suns discussed a possible trade of Durant with the Minnesota Timberwolves, which included Rudy Gobert, Donte DiVincenzo, Terrence Shannon Jr., and the 17th pick in the draft. Had that deal gone through, Beal could have had a place on the team, but Durant was not interested in the Wolves. The deal with Houston left Beal with an undefined role.
Shortly thereafter, the Suns gave Beal and Bartelstein permission to negotiate with other teams for a possible contract buyout, signaling the end of Beal’s era in Phoenix. More than 20 teams showed interest, and Beal met via Zoom with half a dozen teams to discuss his potential fit.Act 3: The Clippers and Harden’s Push
On July 7, the Clippers traded Norman Powell to the Miami Heat in a three-way deal that allowed them to acquire John Collins from the Utah Jazz. The Clippers, who had already shown interest in Beal, accelerated the talks. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and coach Ty Lue spoke with Beal about what the Clippers could offer. However, the key voice was that of James Harden, who pressured the Clippers’ management to sign Beal and then communicated directly with him to convince him. Harden, who played 79 games for the Clippers last season, wanted to lighten his load and believed Beal could help. The Clippers offered Beal depth and talked to him about how he would fit in with Powell. Harden even spoke with Mark Bartelstein, which was unusual.Nobody wants to be freed. There’s pain because of that. But Bradley wants to be in a position where nobody remembers that he was freed, but rather remembers how he plays next season.
Mark Bartelstein
The Suns and the Financial Burden
The Suns used the waive and stretch provision to absorb the $99 million owed to Beal over the next five years. This represents a brutal situation for the team, especially since they don’t control their first-round draft pick until 2031. The decision was made for financial reasons. In the last two seasons, owner Mat Ishbia spent $620 million on salaries and luxury taxes, and the team didn’t win a single playoff game. Waiving Beal saves the Suns a staggering $175 million in luxury taxes this season. While the Suns will still have to pay Beal the $99 million, the $20 million annual payment in the later years will likely represent a much smaller percentage of the salary cap than it does now. This maneuver freed up the Suns to utilize all the roster-building tools they would have been excluded from due to their excessive spending. The addition of Green, who the Suns believe will work well with Booker, was another factor.Reaching the decision was one thing, making the deal, another. The Suns needed Beal to waive at least $13.9 million from the remaining two years of his contract for the buyout to be legal under league rules. Intense conversations ensued, and in the end, Beal left the smallest possible amount for the waiver to work, down to the last penny. Beal agreed to sign with the Clippers for about $5.4 million this season. Beal will lose some money from what he had guaranteed, but with a player option that will allow him to become a free agent again next summer at 33 years old, he hopes that a productive year in Los Angeles will allow him to recover it and more. When L.A. entered into contract talks with Harden after the season, both parties understood the need to add more to the roster. Harden ultimately agreed to a new two-year contract for $81 million with a player option for next season. In the end, the Clippers turned Powell and his mid-level exception into Lopez, Beal and Collins this summer, building the depth they were looking for. With Collins in the last year of his contract, for $27 million, and the Clippers with team options on Bogdan Bogdanovic, Nico Batum and Lopez, they are in a position to have enough cap space to offer a maximum contract next summer, if they wish. Beal and Harden, both with those opt-out options, are incentivized to have great seasons. Kawhi Leonard returns from his first healthy summer in years and, according to team president Lawrence Frank, continued to do full workouts until June after the playoff loss to prepare his body for a deep playoff run next season. And just in time for the dinner rehearsal.We are incorporating one of the NBA’s rising stars, Jalen. His athleticism and natural ability are out of this world. Jalen has already demonstrated his commitment to putting in the work that excellence requires, and we believe that his approach to the game will allow him to unlock even more of his incredible potential here in Phoenix.
Brian Gregory
