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I remember Kwame's rookie season. Early in the season in a nationally televised game, Kwame went down to the floor with a sprained ankle.

What I recall of that incident is Kwame writhed in pain as if he'd been critically wounded. I've had eversion sprains, inversion sprains, and even suffered a fully ruptured Achilles. Pain sucks. I understand guys getting emotional when they think their livelihood is on the line but Kwame Brown's reaction at the time made me think something along the lines of, "He's been down a looooonnnngggg time. I know it hurts but come on, man." Not to put myself and experience with his, but I thought a big, tough guy wouldn't act like that if he's hurt. Even if you're hurting like hell you try and maintain your cool points. Keep your bearing about yourself. No. I thought Kwame was going to cry a river on the court that game. It was not a good omen at all. I remember that much. Not a good omen...

I bring that up to say the day after Beal gets his teeth chipped, and the same day a team rival (perhaps) at his position gets traded, Bradley Beal exploded for his best game perhaps as a pro. Big difference from how Kwame reacted to things. Beal's going to be really, really, really good is what I think. This is an omen of things to come with Bradley Beal.

(PS I once gave Kwame a Norman Vincent Peale track, "The Power of Positive Thinking". In my opinion Kwame is a successful NBA player. He is still in the league over 10 years later, and even playing for the same coach. He is doing his best and that is all any of us can do. Kwame deserves that respect and then some. I apologize if my comment above brings up old mess. I have 100 times the personal failure stories, probably, than Kwame. I brought that up to say Beal is going to be a star IMO.)

Halcyon wrote:After seeing the WT make mention of the fact that Lillard is being considered for USA Basketball, it made me think that Beal may get a shot eventually, if he continues to improve. He will hopefully continue to be a deadly shooter, and his all around game + overall game sense may lend itself for the international game. What do you guys think?

I think it's a pretty sure bet that Beal will pan out to be a better player than Lillard. Lillard is 22. Beal is 19. Heck, if you just look at the post-December numbers, Beal may already be better than Lillard.

While it will clearly depend on what others do as well, Beal could
be on his way to RoY. Beal with it.

Halcyon wrote:After seeing the WT make mention of the fact that Lillard is being considered for USA Basketball, it made me think that Beal may get a shot eventually, if he continues to improve. He will hopefully continue to be a deadly shooter, and his all around game + overall game sense may lend itself for the international game. What do you guys think?

Oh yeah. He is a perfect fit. He will be on it.

So the road has been cleared for Beal. I expect him to step up even more now. Clearly he will end the year as the teams leading scorer.

28 pts is his season high.

I predict he breaks 30 in the next 5 games and I expect 35-38 before the season is over.

dobrojim wrote:While it will clearly depend on what others do as well, Beal could
be on his way to RoY. Beal with it.

As someone who called it before the season started, wouldn't hurt my feeling at all.

MKG who ?

Actually, he would have to really turn it on the from here on out to catch Lillard but its doable. It's Lillards to lose. He has been in that ROTY slot for a long time now.

But I don't really care if Beal gets it or not. Actually, I kind of hope he doesn't. I would rather he flies under the radar for as long as possible. Also, I like the idea of him having a chip on his shoulder in the off season.

Just happy he is what I thought he would be. We got a really solid piece and we needed it. Any player can end up a bust. Beal didn't. He should be here for the next 10 years.

Thank you Jesus.

Over his last 5 games Beal is averaging...

20 pts on 47% shooting, 48% from 3
5 rebounds
3 assists
1 steal and 1 block

His FTA and FT% are back up as well. In February hes averaging 4.5 FTA on 82% shooting. Good to see since he really struggled at the line in January.

Since January 1st, he is averaging:
32.9 minutes
15.7 points
3.4 rebounds
2.5 assists
1.4 turnovers
.500 3P%
.555 TS%

Per 36, that would be:
17.2 points
3.7 rebounds
2.8 assists
1.5 turnovers
.500 3P%
.555 TS%

There are only 7 guards in the league that are exceeding 17 points, 3.5 boards, 2.5 assists and a .550 TS% per 36 minutes Those guys are: Harden, Chris Paul, Vince Carter, Irving, Wade, Kobe and Tyreke Evans. And none of these guys take care of the ball as well as Beal. Beal's TOV% is an incredibly low 8.0. Only Vince Carter is in single digits at 9.5%. Everyone else turns the ball over more than 12% of the time.

Essentially, Beal is playing at a near all-star caliber level. The superstar SG's (Wade, Kobe and Harden) are better than him. The top tier PG's (Paul, Irving, Parker, Westbrook and Curry) are better, and that's about it. Beal is right in the next tier alongside Tyreke Evans. Nobody else really comes close to Beal's combination of scoring, passing, rebounding and efficiency.

Guys we have a future all star here and maybe a future superstar. Love those stats you put up Nate, it really shows how good Beal is playing 2013. I have to give EG credit for this pick, it was a home run. Now we just need Wall to take that next step and Booker, Serph, or Ves to step up. We just need one of those big men to prove they are a long term piece.

What impresses me most about Beal is his pace and awareness. At only 19 years old he plays like a 30 year old vet. He only takes good shots, rotates correctly on defense, and doesn't try to over do things (like Wall does). Very confident kid with a bright future. So glad we didn't get MKG or Waiters.

nate33 wrote:Since January 1st, he is averaging:
32.9 minutes
15.7 points
3.4 rebounds
2.5 assists
1.4 turnovers
.500 3P%
.555 TS%

Per 36, that would be:
17.2 points
3.7 rebounds
2.8 assists
1.5 turnovers
.500 3P%
.555 TS%

There are only 7 guards in the league that are exceeding 17 points, 3.5 boards, 2.5 assists and a .550 TS% per 36 minutes Those guys are: Harden, Chris Paul, Vince Carter, Irving, Wade, Kobe and Tyreke Evans. And none of these guys take care of the ball as well as Beal. Beal's TOV% is an incredibly low 8.0. Only Vince Carter is in single digits at 9.5%. Everyone else turns the ball over more than 12% of the time.

Essentially, Beal is playing at a near all-star caliber level. The superstar SG's (Wade, Kobe and Harden) are better than him. The top tier PG's (Paul, Irving, Parker, Westbrook and Curry) are better, and that's about it. Beal is right in the next tier alongside Tyreke Evans. Nobody else really comes close to Beal's combination of scoring, passing, rebounding and efficiency.

And as some predicted. His super hot .508 3 pts shooting from Jan has dropped.




























.480 for Feb

He is The Read Deal that Bradley Beal
Franchise quality player.
Once you find that, building a team is a lot easier. Great defense and he can score. And he has the right personality. Thats what you tank for.

I'm sure this comp has been made on this thread before, but he reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond. Cerebral players without a lot of "wow" athleticism. A bit undersized at SG but plays serviceable D and isn't a liability on that end of the floor. More than "scorers" - can board, pass, - smart guys to have out there. Richmond was all-star caliber from his rookie year: 22-6-4 on a playoff team, but he also was a 23-year old rook. Beal has a chance to have a Richmond type of career.

jmrosenth wrote:I'm sure this comp has been made on this thread before, but he reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond. Cerebral players without a lot of "wow" athleticism. A bit undersized at SG but plays serviceable D and isn't a liability on that end of the floor. More than "scorers" - can board, pass, - smart guys to have out there. Richmond was all-star caliber from his rookie year: 22-6-4 on a playoff team, but he also was a 23-year old rook. Beal has a chance to have a Richmond type of career.

I think DCZards has been singing that tune since Beal was drafted. Certainly looking like a good call at this point.

tontoz wrote:

jmrosenth wrote:I'm sure this comp has been made on this thread before, but he reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond. Cerebral players without a lot of "wow" athleticism. A bit undersized at SG but plays serviceable D and isn't a liability on that end of the floor. More than "scorers" - can board, pass, - smart guys to have out there. Richmond was all-star caliber from his rookie year: 22-6-4 on a playoff team, but he also was a 23-year old rook. Beal has a chance to have a Richmond type of career.

I think DCZards has been singing that tune since Beal was drafted. Certainly looking like a good call at this point.

Thanks for the props, tontoz.

jmrosenth wrote:I'm sure this comp has been made on this thread before, but he reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond. Cerebral players without a lot of "wow" athleticism. A bit undersized at SG but plays serviceable D and isn't a liability on that end of the floor. More than "scorers" - can board, pass, - smart guys to have out there. Richmond was all-star caliber from his rookie year: 22-6-4 on a playoff team, but he also was a 23-year old rook. Beal has a chance to have a Richmond type of career.

Mitch is the comparison I thought when we drafted Beal. DCZards was spot on.

Dumars.

But I'm old.

jmrosenth wrote:I'm sure this comp has been made on this thread before, but he reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond. Cerebral players without a lot of "wow" athleticism. A bit undersized at SG but plays serviceable D and isn't a liability on that end of the floor. More than "scorers" - can board, pass, - smart guys to have out there. Richmond was all-star caliber from his rookie year: 22-6-4 on a playoff team, but he also was a 23-year old rook. Beal has a chance to have a Richmond type of career.

DCZ was indeed the first to make that call. For your reading and viewing pleasure:
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=1190581&p=32609924


Rock was a full four years older as a rookie at 23. So it's not hard to understand why he was better across the board -- almost. Beal's actually shooting better from downtown (and remember he had that horrific start) and he blocks more shots. I actually think Beal's got more upside, which is scary.

I think Beal does have "wow" athleticism. For an "undersized" rookie sg to be averaging as many blocks as he is, with as many wow blocks as he has made, one has to be an amazing athlete. He also showed some "wow" rebounding the past few games, which I was expecting to see more of given his numbers at Florida. I think he's realized that he can grab rebounds in this league, so I expect his rebounding numbers to improve the rest of the year.

Dat2U wrote:

barelyawake wrote:B.B. King was deemed the "Beale Street blues boy." In terms nicknaming our B. Beal, I believe it has to start there.

Beale Street is famous for:
gumbo
blues
muddy waters
bar-b-que
&
stax records

Well Wizards fans been singing the blues while team has struggled through muddy waters. Hopefully Wall and Beal can can go together like Crawfish & gumbo and they'll bar-b-que the competition and stax records.

Haha! Keeping hope alive. A bit of summer optimism from me.

willbcocks wrote:I think Beal does have "wow" athleticism. For an "undersized" rookie sg to be averaging as many blocks as he is, with as many wow blocks as he has made, one has to be an amazing athlete. He also showed some "wow" rebounding the past few games, which I was expecting to see more of given his numbers at Florida. I think he's realized that he can grab rebounds in this league, so I expect his rebounding numbers to improve the rest of the year.

And that was a pretty nasty dunk on that break away where they called it off because Wall was fouled first.

I think Beal is going to give us some many highlight dunks. He should only get stronger from here.

It doesn't get talked about enough but for a 19 year old young man, he is built like a tank. I think his soft interview personality fools people into missing that about him. First time I saw him in a jersey I thought, wow, he looks strong. Kind of an Wade/Iggy kind of build. Even noticed just last game as he was walking the bench for a timeout that he even has thick calves.

He comes from a big boned family. Brothers are football players. He is sturdy and tough. And good thing the way he keeps taking those tough falls.

Second half of the season is going to be a lot of fun. He is going to start to step up more and more.

January 1 seems like a pretty decent demarcation point of Beal play. He was pretty crappy beforehand and pretty damn good thereafter.

In the 21 games in 2013 Beal has averaged:

14.7 PPG on 45% shooting, 49% from 3.
EFG:53%
TS% 55.7%
3.2 Reb, 2.4 Ast, .9 stl, .6 blk, 1.3 TO.
FT shooting has dropped to 72% for that stretch.