Wizards' Bradley Beal: 'Have to have fun and play with heart'
If there's a silver lining in the injury to John Wall for the Washington Wizards ... wait. Scratch that. There isn't one. But with that said, Bradley Beal's continued emergence in the postseason has been a revelation for the Wizards fans who saw it coming in glimpses during the regular season and outside observers who might have been taken completely by surprise.
As the Washington Post's Michael Lee writes, "Beal has been thrust into a position that he wasn’t ready for three years ago — the last time Wall was forced to miss time with a serious injury — but he wants the responsibility these days. After going through a difficult regular season in which he fought through injuries to his wrist and right leg and struggled to regain his confidence, Beal is possibly starting to surpass the expectations many had for him at this stage in his career."
So how has Beal managed to be so good in the postseason? "The game of basketball is not hard,"Beal said after Game 4, "but you have to have fun and play with heart. Nobody can give you heart."
And nobody can question Beal's heart, either, or the impact its had on his game in the playoffs. Through the 192 games Beal's played in three regular seasons, he's averaged 16.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per 36 minutes. Those are solid numbers, and with a healthy Wall, that's about the production Washington would need from Beal for a lengthy postseason run.
But with his backcourt running mate out of commission, Beal has risen to the occasion. After his enormous Game 4, in which Beal tallied 33 points, six rebounds and seven assists (not to mention three steals), his 2014-15 postseason per-36 numbers sit at 19.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists. He's carrying as much of the Washington offense as he physically can. But the question remains: Will it be enough to move the Wizards one step closer to the NBA Finals?
(h/t Washington Post)
Photo Credit: Brad Mills/USA Today Sports
