Bradley Beal says Wizards 'definitely' have NBA's best backcourt
Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal said during Monday's Media Day that he believes the Wizards are "definitely the best backcourt in the league," according to Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post.
Beal shares Washington's starting backcourt with former No. 1 draft pick John Wall, who in May also declared the Wizards have the NBA's best guard tandem.
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Wall was named an All-Star in 2014 and averaged 19.3 points, 8.8 assists and 4.1 rebounds. He tied for second-most assists per game in the NBA.
After being named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2013, Beal averaged 17.1 points and 3.7 rebounds last season. He shot 40.2 percent from the three-point line, which was ninth among shooting guards.
The two guards combined to play 5,510 minutes for the Wizards in 2013-14. Wall's 2,980 minutes ranked fifth in the NBA and was the highest of any point guard.
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Stephen Curry of the Warriors led all point guards with 24 points per game last season, while his backcourt mate Klay Thompson was seventh among shooting guards with 18.4 points.
Last season, the Wizards finished in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and reached the conference semifinals before falling to the Indiana Pacers. Over the offseason, they signed forwards Paul Pierce and Kris Humphries and re-signed center Marcin Gortat and forward Drew Gooden.
Washington's first preseason game is on Oct. 6, and they open the regular season on Oct. 29 in Miami.
- Molly Geary
