Bradley Beal Trade Rumors: Wizards 'Have Heard Nothing' to Indicate Star Wants Move

The Washington Wizards are operating under the assumption that star guard Bradley Beal wants to remain with the franchise moving forward.

According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, the Wizards "have heard nothing from Beal that indicates he's not committed to being there."

Beal has a player option for next season, meaning he could opt out and become a free agent during the offseason, but the Wizards plan on signing him to a five-year contract extension if he does decline his option, per Windhorst.

While Beal has often been the subject of trade rumors in recent years, he has always been vocal about his loyalty to the Wizards and wanting to win in Washington.

During an appearance on the Woj Pod with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski in January, Beal expressed his belief that the Wizards are "going in the right direction." He also expressed satisfaction that the Wizards have been committed to building around him.

Beal added:

"It's not always like that everywhere. Like, if I go somewhere else, they're just not going to build around you. They'll build around what they have. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that, but if I have the chance to create my own legacy and make it work here with the team that drafted me, then why not give it a shot?"

Despite what Beal has said publicly, David Aldridge and Josh Robbins of The Athletic reported last week that Beal is conflicted about his future in Washington.

They noted that while Beal's preference is to build a winning franchise in Washington, it isn't necessarily a lock that he will sign a max extension during the offseason.

If Beal has any reservations, Windhorst noted that he could exercise his player option for 2022-23, try to force a trade during the offseason and then sign a five-year extension with the team that acquires him.

This season has undoubtedly been a frustrating one for Beal and the Wizards as a whole, considering the team is 11th in the Eastern Conference at 24-29.

Beal was named an All-Star in three of the previous four seasons, but he missed out this time, as his scoring numbers have dropped off significantly.

He has still been productive with 23.2 points, 6.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 three-pointers made per game, but he is well off the pace of the career-high 31.3 points per game he averaged last season.

Beal is also shooting just 45.1 percent from the field and a career-worst 30.0 percent from three-point range.

The 28-year-old veteran has shown he is an elite offensive player when he is at the top of his game, however, so it is understandable why the Wizards seemingly want him to be the cornerstone moving forward.

Beal is dealing with a wrist injury that is getting re-evaluated this week, and while that could be a factor in whether he gets traded before Thursday's deadline, all signs point toward the Wizards keeping him and trying to extend him during the offseason.