PHOENIX – Despite a 13-point win for the Phoenix Suns, deafening boos rang out in Mortgage Matchup Center Thursday night as the Suns hosted the Los Angeles Clippers. The subject of these boos? Former Suns guard and current Clippers player Bradley Beal.
Beal, who played two seasons with the Suns from 2023-2025, was met with a flurry of boos from Suns fans seemingly every time he touched the ball.
It was a sharp contrast from the cheers for Jalen Green, who made his Suns debut after recovering from a hamstring strain. His 29 points helped the Suns beat the Clippers 115-102 to improve to 4-5.
Beal was originally acquired by Phoenix in the 2023 offseason in exchange for a package including Suns fan-favorite Chris Paul and four first-round pick-swaps. Coming off multiple all-star selections with the Washington Wizards, the Suns traded for Beal in an attempt to build a “big-three” alongside superstars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
Beal, who was the sixth-highest paid player in the NBA at the time of the trade, left Suns fans with much to be desired during his Phoenix tenure, with his points-per-game average decreasing from 23.2 to 18.2 following the trade.
After two seasons when Phoenix failed to win a single playoff game, the plug was pulled on the big-three experiment, with the Suns trading Durant to Houston and buying out and stretching Beal’s contract.
Beal, who is still owed $96.9 million by the Suns, signed a two-year contract with the Clippers in the 2025 offseason, and played his first game back in Phoenix Thursday night.
From the announcement of his name among the Clippers’ starting lineup to every time he touched the ball during the game, Beal was met with overwhelming boos from the Phoenix crowd.
“I think Bradley Beal is a bum,” one Suns fan, Tyce Pribyl, said before the game. “He was bad on the Suns. He was overhyped and overpaid. … I know for sure that I’ll be booing him.”
Beal finished with just five points on 2-of-14 shooting in 20 minutes.
This energy shown by the crowd did not go unnoticed, as Phoenix’s Jalen Green, who made his Suns debut Thursday, took notice of passion shown by all those in attendance.
“Even when I wasn’t a part of this team, I always thought the fans were lit here,” Green said. “Cheering the team on and being so active, it’s very lit, and I love it.”
Despite the overwhelmingly negative fan response to Beal’s return to the Valley, newly-hired Suns coach Jordan Ott has nothing but respect for the former Suns player.
“I had great interactions with him when I came in June,” Ott said. “Seeing him from afar, he’s had a great career. Just seeing him out there is good. … I’ve always loved him from afar.”
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Bradley Beal met with onslaught of boos in return as Suns’ Jalen Green thrives
Andy Romike, Cronkite News
November 7, 2025
PHOENIX – Despite a 13-point win for the Phoenix Suns, deafening boos rang out in Mortgage Matchup Center Thursday night as the Suns hosted the Los Angeles Clippers. The subject of these boos? Former Suns guard and current Clippers player Bradley Beal.
Beal, who played two seasons with the Suns from 2023-2025, was met with a flurry of boos from Suns fans seemingly every time he touched the ball.
It was a sharp contrast from the cheers for Jalen Green, who made his Suns debut after recovering from a hamstring strain. His 29 points helped the Suns beat the Clippers 115-102 to improve to 4-5.
Beal was originally acquired by Phoenix in the 2023 offseason in exchange for a package including Suns fan-favorite Chris Paul and four first-round pick-swaps. Coming off multiple all-star selections with the Washington Wizards, the Suns traded for Beal in an attempt to build a “big-three” alongside superstars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
Beal, who was the sixth-highest paid player in the NBA at the time of the trade, left Suns fans with much to be desired during his Phoenix tenure, with his points-per-game average decreasing from 23.2 to 18.2 following the trade.
After two seasons when Phoenix failed to win a single playoff game, the plug was pulled on the big-three experiment, with the Suns trading Durant to Houston and buying out and stretching Beal’s contract.
Beal, who is still owed $96.9 million by the Suns, signed a two-year contract with the Clippers in the 2025 offseason, and played his first game back in Phoenix Thursday night.
From the announcement of his name among the Clippers’ starting lineup to every time he touched the ball during the game, Beal was met with overwhelming boos from the Phoenix crowd.
“I think Bradley Beal is a bum,” one Suns fan, Tyce Pribyl, said before the game. “He was bad on the Suns. He was overhyped and overpaid. … I know for sure that I’ll be booing him.”
Beal finished with just five points on 2-of-14 shooting in 20 minutes.
This energy shown by the crowd did not go unnoticed, as Phoenix’s Jalen Green, who made his Suns debut Thursday, took notice of passion shown by all those in attendance.
“Even when I wasn’t a part of this team, I always thought the fans were lit here,” Green said. “Cheering the team on and being so active, it’s very lit, and I love it.”
Despite the overwhelmingly negative fan response to Beal’s return to the Valley, newly-hired Suns coach Jordan Ott has nothing but respect for the former Suns player.
“I had great interactions with him when I came in June,” Ott said. “Seeing him from afar, he’s had a great career. Just seeing him out there is good. … I’ve always loved him from afar.”
This article first appeared on Cronkite News and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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