Washington Wizards: 4 Bold Predictions for the 2019-20 Season

Bradley Beal averages 27 points and seven assists

Last season, Bradley Beal made history. He was the first player in Wizards franchise history to average at least 25 points, five rebounds, and five assists for an entire season. Beal made sure it was the entire season, too, playing all 82 games for the second consecutive season. No days off.

This season, though Bradley Beal is only going to get better. If there is any silver lining to the last couple of years of John Wall injuries, it’s that Beal has been forced to evolve on the offensive end without his All-Star, ball-dominant running-mate. He’s adapted beautifully, growing his game beyond just long-range sharpshooting.

This year, though, the Wizards have a full off-season to prepare with life without Wall. Never before have they had this amount of time to develop an offense where Bradley Beal will be running the show. As a result, Beal will thrive as the obvious alpha in DC.

Earlier in the offseason, Brooks joined Cris Mannix on the Crossover podcast and predicted that Beal might hover close to double-digit assists this season. I don’t think he’ll drop that many, but he’s only progressing as a play-maker, and the stats will show that this season.

Beal may not repeat his 25-5-5 season. He made it by the slimmest of margins last season, averaging exactly 5.0 rebounds per game. While he might not grab as many boards, look for Beal to be dishing it out a lot more than he did last season.

If Beal can put up these numbers for an entire season, he’d be joining some pretty elite company. Per Basketball-Reference, only 11 NBA players have ever averaged at least 27 points and seven assists per game. Since 2000, only Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden have done so.