Wizards' Bradley Beal Opts Out of NBA Season Restart
As teams begin to prepare themselves to head to the bubble at the Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in Orlando for the restart of the NBA season, teams have been scouring the proverbial waiver wire to bring in players to replace guys that have opted out of returning. We saw the Lakers chase down J.R. Smith after Avery Bradley choose to sit out. The Spurs picked up Tyler Zeller to try and patch the hole created by Lamarcus Aldridge’s shoulder surgery. Brooklyn has left no stone unturned as they head to the Sunshine State with no Kevin Durant, no Kyrie Irving, no DeAndre Jordan and no Wilson Chandler. Spencer Dinwiddie tested positive for the coronavirus last month but hopes to be able to return to the court on Tuesday if things go well.
Another team that is trying to chase down a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference dealing with serious roster issues is the Washington Wizards. As it turns out, Washington was dealt another blow on Tuesday when the team announced that Bradley Beal is not going to play in the restart due to a shoulder injury that has gotten worse over the course of the season. In their statement, the Wizards said:
“Bradley did everything possible to be ready to play, but after closely monitoring his individual workouts we came to the conclusion that it was best for him to sit out the upcoming games in Orlando and avoid the risk of further injury. Although he was able to play through the majority of the season with the injury, the layoff from March until now did not leave any of us feeling comfortable that he would have enough time to be ready to perform at the extremely high level we are all accustomed to seeing and agreed that not participating in the games in Orlando was the right decision.”
Beal himself spoke about the injury and the decision as well. “This was a difficult decision and one that I did not take lightly as the leader of this team. I wanted to help my teammates compete for a playoff spot in Orlando, but also understand that this will be best for all of us in the long term. I appreciate the support of my teammates, the fans and the entire organization and look forward to returning next season to continue the progress we have made.”
Beal was second in the league in scoring with 30.5 points per game this season as he really broke out as an offensive threat. In addition, he added 4.2 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game as he took on more of a facilitator role as well. He shot 45.5 percent from the floor, including 35.3 percent from beyond the arc, and knocked down 84.2 percent of his attempts at the charity stripe. Beal set career highs in field goals made per game (10.4), field goal attempts per game (22.9), three-pointers made per game (three) and attempted (8.4 per contest) this season. His scoring average jumped by nearly five points a game as he put up 25.6 ppg in the 2018-19 season.
With the loss of Beal, the Wizards head into the restart minus arguably their top three players. In addition to Beal being out of action, Washington is minus John Wall, who missed the whole year with a torn Achilles. He chose to continue his rehabilitation in an effort to try and be ready for the 2020-21 season. Davis Bertans, who is a free agent at the end of the season, opted to sit out to avoid risking an injury that could impact him for a payday going forward. He had put up an average of 15.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest on the year while shooting 43.4 percent from the field, including 42.4 percent from beyond the arc.
It’s going to be an uphill climb for Washington to try and get into the postseason picture minus Wall, Bertans and Beal. There is a lot of youth on the Wizards roster with guys like Rui Hachimura, Thomas Bryant, Moritz Wagner, Admiral Schofield and Gary Payton II among others. Washington brought in Jerian Grant to replace Bertans but he isn’t going to be able to move the needle much for the Wizards. The team has a tough road ahead and a short time frame to try and push into striking distance to even trigger the play-in tournament. This blow might be the final one in their proverbial coffin for this season.