Bradley Beal admits that Heat, not Suns, were his 'initial favorite' in trade talks

Beal was traded to the Suns in June

Bradley Beal spent years in trade rumors, but when a deal ultimately arrived, the destination was one of the last teams anyone expected: the Phoenix Suns. Loaded with perimeter players like Kevin Durant and Devin Booker and lacking the sort of trade assets one would expect a player of Beal's caliber to cost, the Suns were an undisputed underdog in the Beal sweepstakes from just about every angle. On Monday, Beal even admitted in the first entry of a season-long diary he will be keeping with Andscaped that his initial preference was to land with another team.

"So, my initial favorite was Miami. And so, we call Miami. [Miami president] Pat [Riley] says well I'll go talk to [owner] Micky [Arison] and figure it out," Beal began. He went on to write that other teams, like the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings and Milwaukee Bucks were in the running before Suns owner Mat Ishbia reached out to him. Still, he waited on the Heat.

"I'm like, 'OK, what's Miami doing? Dragging feet.' And eventually it came to a point to where Miami said they just can't do it. But it was an eye-opener for sure. And that's why I said I went into everything kind of open-minded and with an open slate. And out of nowhere here comes a dark horse in Phoenix and their aggressiveness pushed me over the top."

We now know, to some extent, what held the Heat up. Soon after the Beal trade, then-Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard asked to be traded to the Heat and only the Heat. Miami spent the majority of the offseason pursuing him, likely reasoning that he was the superior veteran guard. Eventually, the Heat wound up empty-handed when the Blazers traded Lillard to the Bucks in the biggest deal of the offseason.

With hindsight, it's fair to wonder if the Heat made the right decision. They were at a distinct disadvantage in Lillard negotiations because of the limited trade assets they held in a field that, despite Lillard's protests, was wide open. Beal, on the other hand, had a no-trade clause. That gave him the power to do what Lillard couldn't: pick his team. In fact, Beal's no-trade clause was powerful enough to even limit the return Washington could get for him. Perhaps Miami could have gotten Beal for far less than it was willing to give away for Lillard.

The full truth is unknown. Beal is a Sun. Lillard is a Buck. No new stars are members of the Heat. That didn't stop the Heat from reaching the Finals last season, but it leaves them severely outgunned in the race for this year's championship. If Miami doesn't find another star before February's trade deadline or manage to overcome the odds and make it back to the Finals without one, the Heat are going to have to wonder what might have been with Beal in the fold.