Washington Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal was among the players that teased NBA fans the most with his talents this season as he appeared on the verge of breaking out throughout the entire year before finally coming up big in the playoffs. Beal averaged 15.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.7 three-point shots per game this past year.
That’s not bad, but the problem is that we see what he can do when the training wheels come off, as evidenced by his performance in the second round against Atlanta, where averaged 25.2 points per game with 5.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.3 three-pointers, 1.7 steals and 0.7 blocks. So why can’t he do this more often?
Here is a look at four things that need to happen for Beal to have a breakthrough fantasy season in 2015-16 and become the stud we know he can be.
Consistency Is Key
Beal is still just 21 years old, so it’s hard to believe that next season will be his fourth in the NBA. He spent this year carving out a role on a team that has several players capable of contributing at a high level, including John Wall and Paul Pierce. Beal was bound to suffer some bouts with inconsistency and the numbers prove that he had his highs and lows in 2014-15. Beal averaged 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists in the month of February compared to 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists in the month of April. That’s evidence of a young player who is still maturing in the NBA. The good news is he’s got room to grow but it’s not necessarily a vertical growth that he needs to discover. We know just how explosive he can be. He just needs to figure out how to be good consistenly.
Paul Pierce Steps Aside
The 37-year-old Pierce undoubtedly played an important role in Washington throughout the regular season and in particular in the playoffs, but he is nearing the end of his NBA career. In order for Beal to reach his fantasy potential, he will need for Pierce to step aside. Pierce averaged 11.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists last season and that clearly takes a bite out of Beal’s fantasy production. If Pierce decides to move on to a new team in free agency, it would mean more responsibility for Beal and a potential improvement in his overall scoring averages across the board.
Chemistry With John Wall Improves
The other aspect of how the Wizards’ roster will play in to Beal’s success next season is dependent on whether or not he can continue to develop his chemistry with All-Star point guard John Wall. Wall really stepped up throughout the season and in the playoffs before suffering a season-ending injury that destroyed Washington’s playoff hopes. That’s been a common theme for the two as they haven’t played enough together. Beal started 46 games in his rookie season while Wall started 42. In 2013-14, Wall started 82 but Beal only started 73. And last season, Beal started 59 while Wall started 79 but then missed a chunk of the playoffs. If they can stay healthy together for a full year and really develop chemistry, it would work towards both players maximizing their fantasy potential for next season.
Health The Most Obvious Factor
As is always the case with a player’s fantasy performance for any given season, health will play an important role in whether or not they can have a breakthrough year. It’s unfortunately become a consistent theme for Beal that he can’t stay healthy. Through three seasons in the NBA (246 total regular season games), Beal has started just 178. It would appear that his injuries have had more to do with bad luck than anything else as he really didn’t have these types of problems in Florida, but it’s now something you have to take into account when you’re drafting him. As of now, you have to expect that he’ll miss at least a handful of games as he has through his first three seasons.
