Beal set for surgery; Wizards, agent talk future
Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal — who’ll undergo season-ending surgery on his left wrist — and his agent Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports met with owner Ted Leonsis and general manager Tommy Sheppard on Monday to discuss the three-time All-Star’s future and the franchise’s plans for constructing a roster, sources told ESPN.
The conversation — which included reaching a consensus on Beal’s ultimate decision to repair a torn scapholunate ligament — will start to shape Beal’s decision on his future with the organization.
Beal — who holds a $36.4 million player option for next season — could sign a new deal to remain with the Wizards worth as much as $245 million over five years.
Beal and Bartelstein have been in consistent contact with ownership and management about the direction of the franchise, and the Monday meeting in Washington D.C. was further dialogue ahead of the Thursday’s trade deadline.
Beal has shown significant loyalty to the Wizards through several trying seasons and has decisions to make on his future. Teams and star players elsewhere have been eager to get him to push for a trade out of Washington, but he’s considered the franchise home and worked with the organization to try and build a contender around him.
The Wizards earlier this month said Beal was diagnosed with the injury and would be reevaluated in one week. That process revealed the need for surgery, confirmed to ESPN by Bartelstein. Beal visited a hand specialist, Dr. Michele Carlson, at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, along with the Wizards medical team.
“Despite the last 10 days of getting intensive treatment and rehab on my wrist, it became clear that I would not be able to compete to my standards or to the level that our team and our fans deserve,” Beal said. “I’m disappointed to have my season end this way, but we all agreed that this was the best decision. I look forward to coming back at 100% and continuing to lead this team as we work together to build toward the future.”
Beal suffered the injury in the third quarter of the Wizards’ 115-95 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies last month.
Beal, a three-time All-Star, leads the Wizards with averages of 23.2 points and 6.6 assists per game this season. Washington drafted him with the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, and he’s averaged 22 points across his Wizards career.
At 24-29, the Wizards are a game out of the postseason picture, one game behind the Atlanta Hawks, who own the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference.