The Golden State Warriors were reportedly interested in Bradley Beal earlier this month, only to swing-and-miss on the 3x All-Star who signed with the L.A. Clippers following his buyout with the Phoenix Suns.
Beal was just one of multiple shooting guards that have been linked to the Warriors so far this offseason, but missing out on the 32-year-old may actually be a perfect blessing in disguise for the franchise as they look to build around Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green.
Warriors may be better with Podziemski/Melton combo over Beal
Beal made some sense for the Warriors as a third scoring option beyond the veteran duo of Curry and Butler, something they still lack to a degree and particularly if they don't bring back Jonathan Kuminga as a restricted free agent.
Beal will now likely serve in that role alongside Kawhi Leonard and James Harden at the Clippers, but The Ringer's Bill Simmons isn't overly convinced that it will work after the struggles in Phoenix playing with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker.
“Part of the issue seemed to be that he (Beal) didn't like being a role player (in Phoenix) who didn't have the ball all the time. Now, he's going to be a role player on the Clippers. I just don't understand why people think this is going to be an awesome situation with him and the Clippers. I don't get it," Simmons said on his podcast.
Perhaps missing out on Beal will work actually work out in Golden State's favor, allowing them to have more supplementary shooting guard options who are greater complement to Curry and Butler.
Brandin Podziemski was the epitome of that after the All-Star break, shooting 43.8% from 3-point range as the Warriors surged up the standings. Even if his form in the playoffs diminished when tasked with taking on more of a scoring role, Podziemski's versatile skillset is clearly valuable and could be more impactful than Beal would have provided.
The same can be said for De'Anthony Melton who Golden State are now expected to sign in free agency once Jonathan Kuminga's future is resolved. The 27-year-old was an excellent fit during his brief tenure with the team early last season, with his two-way impact (if healthy) arguably allowing him to be more valuable than Beal even though he's not the same dynamic scorer.
The other aspect to this is having two players in Podziemski and Melton who are going to be comfortable in lesser, often off-ball roles, rather than the potential locker room issues that could arise if Beal doesn't feel like he's being utilized anywhere near enough.
Missing out on Beal and having him go to a direct pacific rival may be seen as a negative for the Warriors right now, but it has the potential to be a positive once the season gets underway.