Wizards star shooting guard Bradley Beal recently sat down with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report to discuss his impending free agency (h/t to ClutchPoints for transcription). Beal has a $36.4M player option for the 2022-23 season.
“I know what my decision will be based off of, and that’s gonna be where I feel like I can win. That’s going to be my decision,” Beal said. “If I feel like I can win in D.C., that’s what I’m gonna do, and I want people to respect that. You may or you may not, but I’m gonna work my ass off and I’m gonna compete and I wanna make this team better. If it’s elsewhere, it’s going to be the exact same commitment.”
Should he opt out, the Wizards could offer Beal a projected five-year, $247M maximum contract extension this summer. The most a rival team could offer him in free agency would be $183.6M.
Washington drafted Beal out of Florida with the third pick in the 2012 draft. He has never played beyond the Eastern Conference semifinals with the Wizards.
Injuries restricted Beal’s availability for much of the 2021-22 NBA season. The three-time All-Star remained relatively productive when he was available, though his shooting numbers declined in his age-28 season. Beal averaged 23.2 PPG, 6.6 APG and 4.7 RPG across 40 contests on .451/.300/.833 shooting. The Wizards finished with a 35-47 record this season.
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