The moves made this offseason by the Celtics and Cavaliers – including a blockbuster trade with one another – has allowed those two clubs to dominate the conversation on Eastern Conference contenders as the 2017/18 season approaches. However, the Wizards feel as if they’re right there with the top two clubs in the East. In fact, as ESPN’s Brian Windhorst writes, Bradley Beal and the Wizards think they’re the best team in the East, and believe they match up particularly well vs. the Cavs.
“We love the matchup against them and why not?” Beal said. “I said it and J.R. [Smith] didn’t like it too much, some of their other guys didn’t like it too much. But I felt that way. It’s not disrespect with them, I’m not saying we’d have won the series (if the Wizards, instead of the Celtics, had made the Eastern Conference Finals), but I feel like our competition level and matchups would’ve been better.”
As the Wizards head into a new season with increased expectations, let’s round up a few more notes out of D.C.
- Third-year forward Chris McCullough, acquired from the Nets last season, is battling for minutes in the Wizards’ rotation, and head coach Scott Brooks has been impressed, as Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington details. “He’s a better shooter than I thought,” Brooks said of McCullough. “He hasn’t played much the last few years, but he’s having a good camp. I think that’s through the hard work that he’s put in. He came into camp in great shape. He’s showing us that he can play in the league. I don’t know where I can find him the minutes, but at least I know he can definitely play.”
- With Markieff Morris at risk of being convicted on assault charges, which would result in an NBA suspension, the Wizards have been keeping a close eye on their power forwards during their first week back, writes Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. Veteran center Jason Smith is among the players seeing extra time at the four, per Buckner.
- Wizards rookie Devin Robinson, who is on a two-way contract with the team, was in a walking boot at training camp last week, and Brooks suggests that Robinson will be out “for a while” due to a foot injury, tweets Buckner. The G League season doesn’t tip off until November 3, so Robinson has a little extra time to get healthy.
- As we noted yesterday, the Wizards are one of four NBA teams without a G League affiliate for this season, which will have an impact on Robinson, Michael Young, and anyone else Washington wants to assign to the G League.
Beal: If the wizards instead of the Celtics played the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals last year……
Lol, HE should have got the ball out of John Wall’s hands in Game 7 in the 4th quarter against the Celtics.
Wall is not a crunch-time player, he can’t shoot in pressure time.
Bradley Beal should have stepped up and took control like he is capable. He has to realize HE is the closer on that team, not Wall. All this “if and we could have” and all that.
It’s not a discussion how they would have matched up with the Cavs. They didn’t get there. They couldn’t close out game 7 in the fourth quarter.
Isaiah Thomas got it done. John Wall did not.
Ok clearly you’re biased here. John Wall is a good shooter in the clutch and is a clutch player. Just because he didn’t shoot well in Game 7 doesn’t mean he isn’t clutch. If you had to play 40 minutes a game against a good all around team like the Celtics, you’d be tired too. And wall addressed those issues this summer. Beal is a good player too and the wizards did match up better with Cleveland and still do (at least better than Boston). Let’s not forget the wizards blew 2 leads in the first 2 games. This series should’ve been over quicker and in favor of the other team but the lack of depth was the demise for the wizards. And are the Celtics deep this year? Negative. And I will never understand why some fans let one game make a player. Because wall wasn’t clutch in one game, he’s not clutch. Watch the games.
Scoreboard.
Clearly biased towards what or who? Bradley Beal? I’ve just heard John Wall yelp about being a max player, and so sat down to watch game 7 against the Celtics in a very meaningful playoff game, and said okay, who is going to step up out of these two Max contract wannabees? Will it be Isaiah Thomas leading his team to victory or will John Wall lead his team to victory? That’s all. What I saw was Bradley Beal is the leader of that team.
At least Wall didn’t quit, like James Harden
Lol, true !!
Wall made a bit much of the not-giving-up angle. There are lessons to learn from that gm7… maybe he got it and is just bristling at the reminding.
Any theories on the Harden fail? I see similarities to Karl Malone, Reggie Miller, Charles Barkley… when refs make it easy for you during the season, the playoffs become hard to adjust to.
Yup, exactly right.
I love it that in the playoffs Harden doesn’t get that crap call stuff every time he goes to the basket and flails his arms into the defender.