6. Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards
It sounded ridiculous at first, but 2018-19 could be the season that finally tips the scales from the Washington Wizards being John Wall‘s team to being Bradley Beal‘s team. They need both healthy to make a legitimate playoff run, but Beal was a revelation in his first fully healthy season.
While Wall only played 41 games last year, Beal held it down for all 82, averaging 22.6 points, 4.5 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game on .460/.375/.791 shooting splits. His growth as a playmaker was the biggest reason for encouragement, and when he’s engaged, he’s a lengthy and athletic defender.
Beal will never replace Wall as the team’s primary facilitator, but he might be a more well-rounded player and he’s definitely a more dangerous 3-point threat. If he and Wall can both stay healthy (and stop taking so many long 2s), this unspoken struggle for alpha dog status could be settled, and if it finally is, the duo could lead Washington somewhere special together.