Not everything has been great this season for the Washington Wizards but, on Monday evening, the team overcame a 54-point night from James Harden on the way to an impressive win over the Houston Rockets. After the contest came to a close, star shooting guard Bradley Beal was prompted about a rumor that was percolating earlier in the day concerning a potential desire to be traded away from the nation’s capital.
In short, Beal didn’t take kindly to the notion that he was angling for a way out of Washington.
https://twitter.com/HoopDistrictDC/status/1067261866538283008
Earlier in the day, Beal’s agent, Mark Bartelstein refuted the same murmurs with a full-fledged denial of his own.
(2/2) Bartelstein on the Beal report: "That is absolutely not true. The only sources that would know Brad thinking’s are Brad and myself. And Brad’s focus is 100% on helping the #Wizards play consistent, winning basketball.”
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) November 26, 2018
Obviously, it has to be said that Beal pushing back on this does not remove any possibility of a deal in the future. What it does do, however, is quiet the buzz in the moment and the talented guard scored 32 points (in 50 minutes) to help his team pick up a much-needed victory against Houston.
Bradley Beal may not be long for Washington, simply because he has (by far) the highest trade value of any active member of the Wizards organization. For now, though, there doesn’t appear to be a move imminent and Beal isn’t trying to push his way out, at least in the public sphere.
