Bradley Beal, playing on the Washington Wizards’ field for the first time since leaving, made home team supporters regret their decision.
Bradley Beal was honored with a video tribute as the Phoenix Suns’ starting lineup was announced on the Washington Wizards’ field. After that, he demonstrated that the film he had just completed was not the final gorgeous image of him in the US capital.
Beal set a season best with 43 points against the Wizards, helping the Suns win 140-112. He could have easily surpassed 50 points if he hadn’t been taken out with about 9 minutes remaining in the game. The Washington crowd cheered Beal as he departed the field.
“Tonight was amazing,” Bradley Beal exclaimed with delight. “To return to the city that helped me grow up, to meet the team who drafted me on my 19th birthday… So many wonderful memories, and that tribute film was incredible.”
Beal spent 11 seasons with the Wizards before being dealt to the Suns last season. Washington is headed in a different route, with only nine wins in its first 40 games. Meanwhile, the 30-year-old defender can contend for the championship with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker.
“The decision last summer came from a consensus of both sides,” he said. It wasn’t a bitter divorce; it was a pleasant separation. There is no sense of hatred at all.”
After earning a standing ovation from the fans in the opening moments of thanks, the 2012 NBA Draft selection 3 put on a spectacular performance, scoring 14 points in the first quarter and another 12 in the second. One more slam in the third quarter, and he had 35 points.
Wearing a black protective mask after fracturing his nose last week, Beal finished the third quarter with a long jumper with 0.3 seconds left, then sank a free throw when the home team committed a technical foul. That achieved the 41st score.
He played a few more minutes in the fourth quarter before being removed from the game by coach Frank Vogel. The 30-year-old great is the most active player on the field, clocking in at 31 minutes and 1 second.
“To be honest, I didn’t even intend to let him play in the last half,” Coach Vogel said after the game. “We still let Bradley play a few more minutes, but not longer.”
Bradley Beal finished with a 16-21 record, and it does not appear that he sought to throw as much as possible to shine on the day he saw his old squad. The individual who tried was Beal’s teammate.
“What transpired on the field did not match what we said in the dressing room, but you could feel the team’s energy. And I couldn’t be furious with them,” explained the three-time football player. All-Star stated.