Bradley Beal on his stuggles after the Wizards home opener against the Celtics:
Since he was officially announced as a member of the Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal has been compared to Ray Allen, James Harden, Dwyane Wade, and, as of last Saturday, Jeff Malone. He was not brought in as a savior, but as a complement to John Wall and Nene, and maybe even an upgrade over Jordan Crawford and the dearly departed Nick Young. And when Beal was announced as the starting shooting guard in the Wizards’ season debut last week, he was the second-youngest shooting guard to ever hold that distinction (Kevin Durant did it first).
Unfortunately for Beal, his performances in the first two games of the season haven’t reminded anyone of Ray Allen, The Beard, D-Wade, Jeff Malone, or even Quinton Ross for that matter. Beal has shot 2-for-13 and scored just 10 points over two contests. In crunch time against the Celtics on Saturday, Coach Randy Wittman felt more comfortable with A.J. Price and Jannero Pargo in the back court. Price commented that it seemed like Beal was the “first guy [other teams] talk about in the scouting report.” Based on Doc Rivers’ comments in the pre-game presser, that is 100 percent correct:
“Beal’s good, a solid, fundamental basketball player, and a great shooter. He reminds of a Jeff Malone, a thin Jeff Malone, except he can put the ball on the floor a little more, but he’s a terrific rebounder for his size.”
Beal has gotten words of encouragement from Trevor Ariza, who told him “it may not be your year this year, but you have to stay the course,” from Emeka Okafor, who told him to keep an “even keel,” and from Randy Wittman, who asked him to focus on other facets of his game like defense and rebounding. But Beal may also want to seek solace from two more unlikely sources: Jared Sullinger and Doc Rivers.
