The Washington Wizards have always been a question mark across the NBA for years. They’ve always been in the mix for a playoff appearance. They’ve always been both not good enough to make a run, but also too good for a decent draft pick every year. From the last five years, the highest draft pick we’ve had was the 9th overall pick. Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard has been put in a tough position to get creative with making a contending team around 3x all-star Bradley Beal.

There have also been questions regarding Bradley Beal’s ability to elevate his team. This is what would make people consider him a top 5 shooting guard in the league. Other shooting guards like James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, and Paul George have proved that they can elevate their team’s play while also playing at a high level themselves. Bradley has been playing at a high level for the past couple of years, averaging 31.3 points per game in 2021, along with competing with Steph Curry for the scoring champion title that season. Justin from Oakland Mills High School said “he is not known to produce winning basketball when leading the team.”

There is also the issue of the loaded Eastern Conference. Between Boston adding Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari, and Cleveland landing Donovan Mitchell, and Philadelphia adding P.J. Tucker, there is a whole lot of competition for a championship this year. It would be very challenging for the Wizards to make a run this season going against this kind of competition half the year. Senior Anthony Miller feels “with their current roster they won’t be a threat in a loaded Eastern Conference.”

However, some heads may have turned after the Wizards’ preseason game in Japan against the Warriors. Kristaps Porzingis, who we picked up last year in a trade, looked very good in limited minutes, putting up 18 points in 22 minutes on 5-9 shooting from the field and 2-4 from three. The starting point guard, Monte Morris also looked good for them, scoring 11 points and shooting 5-8 from the field, and 1-3 from three.

It seems that the success of the Washington Wizards this upcoming season relies somewhat on Bradley Beal. It’s time for him to take that next step and become the leader of a team who can make the playoffs and have success. The times he did make the playoffs, he played with John Wall and Russell Westbrook, who were both primary ball handlers at those times. He needs to show the fans and everyone else watching that he can be that caliber of a player. He needs to show everyone that he can be a top 5 shooting guard in the league. That will bring the Wizards to around the same level of lower tier teams in the east like Toronto, Indiana, and Charlotte.