Like Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki or even Udonis Haslem, Bradley Beal does intend to stay within his franchise forever to bring a title to the city. In an interview given to the magazine Haute Living, the three-time All-Star insists on his loyalty to the Washington Wizards and his desire to win there.
Bradley Beal and the Wizards are on track to write a beautiful love story. Drafted third by the capital franchise in 2012, the full-back re-signed this summer an XXL contract worth 251 million dollars until 2027. Enough to plan for the long term (and ensure grandma’s retirement). “I have a huge desire to win here” does he assure Haute Living, and the talented Wizards guard admits that the mutual loyalty between him and his franchise was a huge factor when it came to signing a contract. We knew of him that he didn’t like the concept of forming superteamsand he confirms it even now by insisting on the flavor that a title would have at home, in Washington.
“In an NBA career, you don’t have a lot of chances of becoming the franchise player. Having the opportunity to be able to write my own story is huge. […] This is the team that drafted me. They are very loyal to me. Basketball is a business. We see drafted guys who get traded shortly following. Here, I never had this feeling, this cloud above my head. I love the fact that we are always trying to move forward. I feel like if I win a title here, with everything I’ve been through, the adversity, the ups and downs, it would make the win that much nicer. I like the difficulty and sometimes thwart the predictions. »
Beal is aware, however, that the road is long before he can hope to wear the Larry O’Brien trophy, especially with his beloved Wizards (35 wins for 47 losses last season). This summer the roster has also changed, with a lot of news: Will Barton and Monte Morris arrive from Denver, Delon Wright arrives from Atlanta and good old Taj Gibson has left the Knicks to join the capital. Not to mention the 10th choice of the last draft, Johnny Davis. And the arrivals of Kyle Kuzma or Kristaps Porzingis are still recent and their integration into the franchise needs to be perfected, even if the former Laker proved what he was capable of last year.
“We always have to develop as a team, but I’m confident. It was Wes Unseld’s (coach) first season with us last year. We players have had to adjust and acclimatize to a new system. We won’t be undefeated in the first 20 games, eh, we’re still making progress and we’re developing our team chemistry during the off-season, which will allow us to attack the season well. We have regarding 10 new guys compared to last season, we are almost playing with a new team”.
Bradley Beal is now the franchise player for the Washington Wizards and his hopes for the team’s future are high. After signing him to the max contract this summer, it’s time for the Wizards to win games and build a serious project around him. To do this, the team has until at least 2027 (end of its contract), and it will be necessary to surround it well because in terms of personal statistics (31.3 points on average in 2020-21, 2nd best scorer in the League behind Curry), we don’t worry regarding Bradley.
Source : Haute Living