Washington Wizards: 5 players facing most pressure in 2019-20

1. Bradley Beal

Last but certainly not least is Bradley Beal, who will feel all sorts of pressure as the face of the Washington Wizards team during the 2019-20 season. Though he is not expected to lead the team to the playoffs, the entire league is expecting another big year out of Beal.

The two-time All-Star set career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per game while leading the league in minutes played. This was to be expected once John Wall went down with his knee issue and was then kept out after his Achilles injury.

This coming season we will see Beal go at it as the lone face of the squad from the get-go. The team has put complimentary pieces around him like point guard Ish Smith, backup scorer Isaiah Thomas and shooters C.J. Miles and Davis Bertans on the wings.

Beal will still be looked at to do just about everything on offense for this team, and the pressure is coming from not only the team, but also himself.

The team’s offense will run through Beal and Washington will only win games if he scores and distributes, so the pressure each game day will be substantial. The addition of IT, if he can get back to what he was, as another threat should remove some of the scoring burden off Beal’s shoulders.

Outside of the team pressure, the Florida product placed some additional pressure on himself this offseason by not signing the team’s three-year, $111 million extension offer. If Beal earns an All-NBA nod after this season, he will be eligible for the supermax deal.

This is a good plan for Beal, who should see how the season plays out before locking himself into the Wizards’ offer when he could earn more.

By banking on himself this season, Beal is promising to play his hardest for a team that has lower expectations than he is used to.

While some added pressure in a relatively low-stakes season may be what’s best for Beal, he is facing the most pressure as the face of the 2019-20 Washington Wizards team.