LA Clippers guard Bradley Beal has declined his $5.6 million player option for next season and will become an unrestricted free agent.
The Clippers also picked up Brook Lopez's $9 million team option and declined the team options for Bogdan Bogdanovic ($16 million) and Nic Batum ($5.9 million) on Monday.
Beal signed with the Clippers last summer but the guard played in only six games after suffering a fracture in his left hip that required season-ending surgery. Beal averaged career lows of 8.2 points and 20.2 minutes per game while shooting 36.8% from 3.
The Clippers pivoted from being a veteran-heavy team entering last season to one bringing in younger talent and more draft assets since Beal's injury. They traded James Harden and Ivica Zubac in separate deals last season.
The team is interested in bringing Beal back, but the guard's decision to opt out allows him to gauge the free agent market. The Clippers can explore other opportunities as well.
Beal, 33, is entering his 15th season and has career averages of 21.4 points, 4.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds along with 37.6% shooting from 3.
Lopez played 75 games and averaged 8.5 points and 3.6 rebounds in his first season with the Clippers last season. With Yanic Konan Niederhauser sidelined due to a Lisfranc injury and John Collins an unrestricted free agent, Lopez projects to start for the team next year. The Clippers also have Isaiah Jackson at center.
Bogdanovic played in 23 games last season and averaged 7.4 points. The shooter spent a season and a half with the Clippers after he was traded from Atlanta in 2024-25.
Batum played in 74 games and averaged 4.0 points in 17.5 minutes. The 18-year veteran has spent five-plus seasons with the Clippers. He was traded to Philadelphia during the 2023-24 season but returned and played for the Clippers the past two seasons.