Bradley Beal has shown his loyalty to the Washington Wizards time and time again. This season, he's playing on a team that made some noise at the start of the campaign, sitting atop the Eastern Conference standings, showing they are ready to compete.
Although things aren't that great right now, the Wizards remain a difficult rival in the East after a moved offseason. They sent Russell Westbrook to Los Angeles in exchange for Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
A lot has been said about Beal's future in the league, but he's repeatedly stated he wants to continue his career with the Wizards and see if they can have a legit shot at the NBA championship. He's still young, going through his prime, and with the right pieces, the Wizards could make a deep run in the future.
Instead of giving up on the team, Beal wants to try his luck and give it a shot in D.C. before deciding he's done with the team and starts looking for a new challenge in the league. Talking with Adrian Wojnarowski on The Woj Pod, Beal explained why he decided to stick around and give it another chance with the Wizards.
"Honestly, realizing that a franchise is willing to build around you. It's not always like that everywhere. Like, if I go somewhere else, they're just not going to build around you. They'll build around what they have. There's nothing absolutely nothing wrong with that, but if I have the chance to create my own legacy and make it work here with the team that drafted me, then why not give it a shot? It it works, it works, If it doesn't, I can say 'at least I tried.' That's just who I am, that's my blessing and curse, my loyalty. We're transitioning, we're going in the right direction, but we still have a lot of improvements to make."
He knows he can put himself in a better position, but Beal wants to create his story in Washington and try to compete with the team. They rank 8th right now but making the right moves, Washington could assemble a team that can compete against the powerhouses of the conference.
Right now, the Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers are considered the best teams in the East. There are other squads like the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets that could sign their names on that list.
Washington could be one of those, too, but they need to improve a couple of things before being contenders in the East. Beal will be ready to help them however he can, but that doesn't mean he'll stay there if things go south.
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