Bradley Beal and Frank Vogel insisted there were no issues between them after a heated exchange in Game 2 of the Suns’ playoff series against the Timberwolves.
Another incident in the Timberwolves’ Game 4 victory over the Suns calls into question their relationship and the direction of a team that entered the season expecting to win a championship.
When Beal was off the bench in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss, Vogel reached out to slap Beal, but the guard backhanded the coach’s hand away and then sent him to the bench, where he normally would. It looked like he was clapping his hands with his teammates.
With the addition of Beal, a three-time All-Star who has been a key player for the Wizards for many years, the team had the fourth-best odds of winning before the season started, but it is natural that there will be some tension within the team that won by a landslide in the first round.
But he and Vogel downplayed the Game 2 exchange, which occurred during a fourth-quarter timeout.
“It wasn’t between the two of us,” Beal told reporters at the time. “It was kind of like what’s going on in the game. See, our flow. Our defense was terrible, and you’re like, ‘What are we doing?’ I’m glad. “
Beal, 30, struggled in the Game 2 loss, scoring 14 points on 6-of-17 shooting and committing four turnovers.
The Suns acquired Beal in the summer by trading floor general Chris Paul, 38.
Beal was named Phoenix’s starting point guard. According to a reporter from The Athleticneither he nor Devin Booker were happy in their roles all season.
To make matters worse, Kevin Durant was dissatisfied with his role.
It’s unclear how the Suns will resolve this. Teams tend to scapegoat coaches, but Vogel just completed the first season of a five-year, $31 million contract.
But in this era of player upgrades, anything is possible, and according to The Athletic, Vogel broke into the team after the team lost to the Clippers on April 9 after trailing 35-4 at one point. The players seemed surprised.
The Athletic said the players “did not accept” Vogel’s abuse, which it described as “forceful and vulgar.”
Players rolled their eyes and one player had to hold back laughter as Vogel continued to taunt the team the next morning, he told The Athletic.
The Timberwolves’ social media team took advantage of this and trolled Beer from a Bleacher Report post about X.
The post highlighted Beal’s words that he would never be washed away and that “I would be damned if that happened.”
“Everything is new” The Timberwolves account responded Sunday night.
Phoenix finished 6th in the Western Conference with a record of 49 wins and 33 losses during the regular season.
