Bradley Beal has been healthy the past 2 seasons playing all 82 games and is coming off a season in which he averaged a career high 25 ppg. When I look at the Washington Wizards’ situation with not only Bradley Beal but John Wall who is expected to miss the entire coming season it reminds me of Sam Presti and how he had to rebuild and trade Russell Westbrook and Paul George
away when we all thought they would compete for titles even after taking two consecutive first round exits. Russell Westbrook rebuilt his reputation and sacrificed his game and allowed for Paul George to have a career season averaging a blistering 28 ppg and finishing top 3 in MVP voting this past season.
Sam Presti moved both superstars and is looking to rebuild around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who looks to be one of the top 5 point guards in the NBA if not some day the best point guard in the game 2-3 years from now. Back to Bradley Beal who I believe is a great player but not a Tier 1 star, more like Tier 2 at best so Tommy Sheppard needs to look in the mirror and make some tough decisions from now till October 21 which is the deadline for the Wizards to offer Bradley Beal a repoted 3 year $111 million dollar contract. Bradley Beal can vault several teams who project to make the playoffs but have no real shot at a NBA title, for example the Nets,Celtics, and even the Bulls. There have been rumors about the Miami Heat willing to take a gamble on John Wall regaining his all-star form and they would be willing to take on both Bradley Beal and John Wall and morph themselves into title contenders.
Tommy Sheppard is the new GM of the Washington Wizards and I comprehend he wants all approval of the Washington Wizards’ fan base but this team he has around Bradley Beal has a 46-47 win ceiling max, I don’t see much beyond Bradley Beal and Isaiah Thomas on the roster. Thomas O’Bryant should have a breakout season now that he is extended in Washington and locked in for the next 3 years, but let’s get serious Bradley Beal does not have a team around him to take down the Bucks or Sixers in the East. Bradley Beal is a husband and just introduced his second child to his beautiful family,never gets in trouble,never stirs up any drama within the Wizards organization, of course you want him around for the long haul but what is his motive? Does he want to gamble on miraculously winning a title in Washington or become a winner to make his case for being the best shooting guard in the game.
Most NBA fans would likely take James Harden and Klay Thompson over Bradley Beal but after those two who comes close to Bradley Beal? Klay Thompson is a 3-time champion and came up with the Golden State Warriors but you can not compare what the Warriors were able to do the past 5 seasons with the Wizards. The Wizards have been juggling different coaches, they signed Howard and that was a fail, they more than likely peaked the 2015 playoffs where they were eliminated. Former 3rd overall pick Otto Porter Jr is flourishing in Chicago and averaged a career high 17 ppg the moment he played in Jim Boylen’s system which opened his game as a ball-handler and Otto Porter Jr was creating shots off the dribble a lot more compared to the 14 ppg he averaged alongside Bradley Beal and John Wall.
To conclude it is time for the Washington Wizards to trade Bradley Beal and not risk losing him for nothing when he becomes a free-agent 2 summers from now. Rui Hachimura is not ready to be the player that Bradley Beal needs to elevate the Washington Wizards to new heights and Bradley Beal is already 26 years old. Some things are just not meant to last forever and the Washington Wizards would be best off getting as much picks as possible and an impact player with all-star potential down the road to pair with Rui Hachimura who looks like he could be a perennial all-star 2-3 years from now. I wonder if the Sixers would be interested in trading Ben Simmons for Bradley Beal?
D-NBA 