Bradley Beal says he does not believe his move to the bench in the Phoenix Suns' win over the Philadelphia 76ers has anything to do with trade rumours.

For the first time in nine years, Beal started an NBA game on the bench but impressed as he came on to score 25 points. Phoenix overcame an early deficit to win 109-99 on Monday, with Kevin Durant also adding 23.

Beal and Jusuf Nurkic, who returned from a three-game suspension and also added five points and seven rebounds, gave the Suns a needed boost when they were introduced.

In fact, the Phoenix reserves outscored their 76ers counterparts 54-7, the second-most points the Suns' bench has scored in a game over the last two seasons.

Following the decision to put Beal on the bench, there was speculation that the guard could be on the trade block, though a no-trade clause in his contract means he would have to sign off on any potential deal.

But when asked about the possibility, Beal insisted he had heard no news of a possible trade: "If so, I need to be addressed because I hold the cards. Until I'm addressed and somebody says something different, then I'll be a Sun."

DUB. pic.twitter.com/EO0HEsfEMy
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 7, 2025

Speaking to AZCentral, he also noted that he accepts coach Mike Budenholzer's change.

"Coach made his decision. Live with it. It's kind of two-fold.

"I'm a starter in the league. I firmly believe that. No disrespect to anybody, but I'm a starter. Coach made a decision. I'm not going to sit there and argue with him. I'm not going to sit here and be a distraction."

The 76ers, meanwhile, were without Joel Embiid due to a foot sprain, with this the 21st game he has missed this season.

Without him in the line-up, Philadelphia have a 7-14 record (14-20 overall), leaving them 11th in the Eastern Conference.

"It's day-to-day," Nurse said of Embiid's latest injury. "He hurt it a [few] games ago, and it's been trying to get him back in there. ... It's not good enough to go [on Monday], but it's nothing major."