When Bradley Beal signed a contract extension with the Wizards during the 2019 preseason, he only tacked one guaranteed year onto his previous deal, plus a player option for 2022/23. However, despite not opting for a longer-term contract that would secure his place in Washington for years to come, Beal says he has no plans to leave the Wizards.
“I hate change. If it happens, it happens,” Beal said in a piece for The Undefeated, as told to Marc Spears. “But if I can control it, I will finish in D.C.”
Beal was viewed as a potential trade candidate before he signed his extension last October. That deal took him off the trade market for the 2019/20 season, but there has been ongoing speculation that another losing season in Washington could prompt the star guard to push for a change of scenery within the next year or two. It doesn’t sound – for now at least – as if Beal is thinking about taking that route.
Despite displaying some occasional frustration with the Wizards’ season, Beal told Spears that the idea of sticking with one franchise and someday having his jersey retired appeals to him. Describing himself as “kind of loyal to a fault” and comparing himself to longtime Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard, Beal pointed out that it would be more rewarding to one day win a title with the Wizards than to jump ship to join a contender, especially since that path wouldn’t guarantee a championship either.
“I can sit here and say, ‘Yeah, I can go to Boston, I can go to Toronto, I can go to Miami’ … I can go everywhere everybody wants me to go,” Beal said. “But what would that look like? It wouldn’t necessarily be my team to where now I’m in a situation in Washington where I’m being built around.
“I know I’m going to have to take these bumps and bruises,” Beal said of the Wizards’ recent struggles. “I knew this last summer. I knew this, hell, the summer maybe even before that. You just got to grind it out, and stand true to who you are.”
Although the Wizards are just 22-39 this season, they rank ninth in the Eastern Conference and are on pace to exceed the win total oddsmakers projected in the preseason. They’ll get point guard John Wall back from his Achilles injury in the fall and may have a little cap flexibility this summer to add players who can complement their backcourt stars.
This is what guys say just before they get traded right?
Instead of the Knicks going for CP3, they could use some draft capital and go after Beal. Then try to “lure” a FA in 2021.
I was thinking the same thing.
Like when a GM gives a vote of confidence to the head coach and hes fired 2 weeks later.
Seems like when a player says all the right things, hes shipped away in short order.
Could just be Beal being a team player and not taking and leverage away from Washington.
Or he could be serious and cares about his legacy in Washington.
What I found most interesting is Toronto being brought up as a championship contender. At least the players know what’s up even if ESPN doesn’t
Or if you’re the HC and you say your OC is def back, and a few hours later hes fired. The only reason tho that Washington is his team is bc Wall is never coming back. Beal was CJ and was going to be CJ of the east. Said it before, Washington is Portland of the East before Wall went down.
He’s letting John Wall know that the Wiz is his team now.
Who’s John Wall?
Stucco salesman from New Jersey.
Beal is the perfect fit for the Knicks. They haven’t had a reliable shooter since Allan Houston. Time to use some those assets for a good player for a change.
Good for him for at least saying the right things BUT I’m also afraid if he does indeed stick to his guns and stay with the Wizards for his entire career… it may be a disappointing one (from a winning perspective). I don’t see a clear path to them being able to be competitive any time soon and he may just kind of be wasted sticking around WAS. Good for him for having the right attitude and sticking it out with a losing club… I just hope for his sake he doesn’t have to get stuck losing for His entire prime — as he is a great player!
There is more to life than winning or money, you know. If he is happy in DC, he is happy with the situation & with been the man, who cares if the team wins or not?
All the stars can’t win, this new obsession that a star player must win a ring for his legacy is just outrageous. He keep doing what he does & is gonna be a legend regardless what the team does.
I appreciate & love the guys that are loyal, nothing better than been a one team player, to me that is worth more than a ring at the end of your career, you see even a total bum of a player like Udonis is regarded a legend in South Florida, imagine if he had been any good like Lillard.