The first off-season blockbuster trade in the 2023 National Basketball Association occurred on Sunday. The Washington Wizards have traded shooting guard Bradley Beal of St. Louis, Missouri and guard Jordan Goodwin of Centreville, Illinois to the Phoenix Suns for point guard Chris Paul of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, shooting guard Landry Shamet of Kansas City, Missouri and multiple second round picks according to Sam Quinn of CBS Sports. There will also be pick swaps included in the deal.
Beal has spent 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Wizards. In 2022-23, he was averaging 23.2 points per game, 5.4 assists per game, and 3.9 rebounds per game. Beal had a field goal percentage of .506, three-point percentage of .365, and a free throw percentage of .842. Three times Beal has been a NBA All-Star. He was recognized in 2018, 2019 and 2021.
Paul is joining his sixth NBA franchise. He previously played for the Oklahoma City/New Orleans Hornets from 2005 to 2011, the Los Angeles Clippers from 2011 to 2017, the Houston Rockets from 2017 to 2019, the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2019 to 2020, and the Suns from 2020 to 2023.
In 2022-23 with Phoenix, Paul averaged 13.9 points per game, 8.9 assists per game, 4.3 rebounds per game, and 1.5 steals per game. He had a field goal percentage of .440, three-point percentage of .375, and a free throw percentage of .831.
Paul was a NBA All-Star in nine straight seasons from 2008 to 2016, and again three straight seasons from 2020 t0 2022. He has led the NBA in steals per game six times, assists per game five times, and free throw percentage once. During the 2021-22 NBA season, Paul became the first player to reach 20000 points and 10000 assists in his career. Heading into next season, Paul has 21755 points and 11501 assists.
