Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal knows he has the better team this season, and the three-time All-Star says his teammates need more speed and aggression when attacking the basket.
“It’s still a work in progress,” Beal told reporters on Monday after the Wizards’ 118-111 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. We still have a lot of guys who can do a lot of things.
Based on a few NBA betting sites, the Wizards have the eighth lowest odds to win the championship in 2023. Some sportsbooks are showing higher playoff odds than the Charlotte Hornets and Detroit Pistons.
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— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) November 1, 2022
“We’re figuring out this rhythm,” the witch guard continued. “We need to be more aggressive. I think we put the ball up at times.
We’re not cutting hard, we’re not scouting hard, we’re not getting into our sets as quickly as a lot of teams do, we’re not getting easy buckets. I think we have to work hard to score goals.
Beal finished with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists in 38 minutes. He also shot 7-of-18 from the floor and 2-of-6 from 3-point range. The Sixers took a 34-21 lead to start the second half.
Bradley Bell feels the Wizards need to show more speed and aggressive play on the court.
In seven starts this season, Beal is averaging 20.7 points, 3.9 boards and 6.1 assists. He is also shooting 50.9% from the field and 31.3% from downtown.
Teammate Kyle Kuzma agreed with Beal’s assessment. “[We just have to] Think about what we want to do,” the forward said after the loss in Philadelphia.
“Obviously you want to have an identity, but in this NBA landscape, you have to play a lot of different brands of basketball, right?
We just have to get it. Know what we want to do on the ball and what we want to accomplish.
In addition, Kuzama finished with 9 points, 7 boards and 2 assists in 33 minutes of play. The Wizards shot 3-for-5 from the field and made one 3-pointer.
In the 2021-22 season, the Wizards started 5-2 through the first seven games of the season. They won two overtime games in the first two weeks. However, Washington finished the season 35-47 (.427) and 12th overall in the Eastern Conference.
For their next game, the Wizards play the 76ers again on Wednesday night at the Wells Fargo Center. This rematch can be seen live at 6pm ET on NBC Sports Washington.
