Washington Wizards: 5 keys to series vs. Raptors

2. Find Bradley Beal’s shooting stroke again

One player who seemed to be slumping towards the end of the season was Bradley Beal. Beal seems to have lost his shooting stroke, but a break like this is a perfect time for him to regroup. He averaged 20.8 points while shooting just 33.3 percent from 3-point range in the Wizard’s final six games of the year.

Helping Beal find his rhythm early in this series is paramount to the Washington Wizards’ offensive success. Beal appeared in all 82 games for Washington this season while leading them in scoring (22.6 points per game). He shot 37.5 percent from behind the arc all season, a figure that fluctuated down the stretch.

It didn’t help shooting 0-for-6 from the arc against the Chicago Bulls on April 1 or 1-for-7 in the final game of the season against the Orlando Magic. He’s trying to shoot himself out of his slump, so a change of scenes to the NBA Playoffs may be just what he needs.