2016-17 NBA Awards Season: Top 10 Most Improved Player Candidates

Nov 23, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) dunks the ball in the third quarter against Denver Nuggets forward Nikola Jokic (15) at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Utah Jazz defeated the Denver Nuggets 108-83. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports /

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Feb 26, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal (3) shoots the ball as Utah Jazz guard Rodney Hood (5) defends in the first quarter at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

5. Bradley Beal

The 2016-17 season was exactly what Bradley Beal supporters had been pining for. After showing such tantalizing glimpses of his potential in the playoffs, Beal had always been unable to stay healthy long enough to build on his progress with a full regular season.

That changed this year, with Beal playing in 77 games while averaging 23.1 points and 3.5 assists per game on 48.2 percent shooting from the field — all career highs. He also chipped in 3.1 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game for good measure, and made 40.4 percent of his threes.

Considering Beal was taking a career-high 7.2 three-pointer per game — 2.3 more than his previous career high — that was no small feat. Scott Brooks deserves some credit for unleashing Beal and encouraging him to take more threes, but the truth is, him simply staying healthy allowed us to witness this promising 2-guard’s best season yet.

After the Washington Wizards doled out that massive five-year, $128 million contract extension last summer, Beal has more than rewarded them with his play, increasing his scoring average 5.7 points per game and his field goal percentage by 3.3 percent from last year. At 23 years old, Beal is finally getting the chance to show his star potential.