The Wizards‘ new group of perimeter backups could make Bradley Beal more effective and help him stay away from injury, writes J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. A series of mishaps has limited Beal to 56, 73 and 63 games in his first three NBA seasons, but his minutes per game should be reduced next year with the offseason additions of Gary Neal, Jared Dudley, Alan Anderson and Kelly Oubre. Neal signed with Washington as a free agent. The Wizards sent a second-round pick to Milwaukee in exchange for Dudley in a July trade. Anderson signed as a free agent after two years in Brooklyn. And Oubre was acquired in a draft-night deal with Atlanta. “I think Jared is going to help us out tremendously,” Beal said. “Alan is going to help us out. … I’m excited. We still have a great team, still have our core together and it’s just a matter of going out and getting the job done again.”
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- The loss of free agent Kevin Seraphin to the Knicks may force the Wizards to fully commit to a small-ball approach, according to Seth Partnow of The Washington Post. Washington had success with that strategy during the playoffs, and Partnow argues that the improvement of Otto Porter Jr. means that the Wizards’ best bet is a lineup with John Wall, one big man and three shooters.
- Melvin Ejim’s deal with the Magic is for two years at the minimum salary, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. The former Iowa State star will receive $150K guaranteed in the first season.
I wouldn’t be too worried about Beal’s minutes at this stage of his career. If the Wizards are worried about him breaking down, well, that’s not a great sign for his future.
I’ve said that I think the wizards are going to be a lot better this year
Do you think the loss of Paul Pierce will affect them much? Or will all the new guys offset it?