10 NBA Starters Who Might Be Better Off As Sixth Men

5. Bradley Beal

I don’t expect this recent trend to continue through the rest of his career, nor should Washington Wizards fans be rooting for Bradley Beal to continue coming off the bench. But for the purposes of this article, we can’t ignore that the Wizards have been better this season with Beal anchoring the second units.

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Beal has nearly split his time with the starters and the second unit this season, starting in 20 games and coming off the pine for 19. Washington is 9-11 with him starting, and though Beal has averaged a superior 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game in those contests.

But he’s also been a -2.6 as a starter, as opposed to a +2.6 coming off the bench. Throw in the Wizards’ 11-8 record in his 19 games with the reserves, plus his still respectable 16.1 points, 2.4 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game and we’re starting to see a trend emerge.

Those 39 games represent a microscopic sample size, and there’s no question the Wizards will be hoping he can return to being a productive starter come playoff time, when Playoff Bradley Beal always seems to rise to the occasion. But for the time being, we can’t ignore that Beal has been better for this team coming off the bench.

Next: No. 4