Scott Brooks: ‘[John Wall and Brad Beal] Are Like Brothers’

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The relationship between John Wall and Bradley Beal has been one of the bigger stories of the offseason. In August, Wall said that he and Beal “have a tendency to dislike each other on the court,” which raised red flags amongst Wizards fans and became fodder for talking heads during the NBA’s dead period.

One person who isn’t worried about the chemistry between the team’s most important players is new coach Scott Brooks, who dealt with two young stars while in Oklahoma City.

From The Washington Post

“There’s a lot of things I’m worried about going into camp, and every coach in this League is worried about. That is not one of them,” Brooks said of Wall and Beal’s possible rift. “I haven’t even talked to our assistant coaches about it. Will I meet with each player individually? Yes. Will I meet with the team? Yes. Will I meet with the positions together? Yes. But I don’t see our team having a problem with chemistry.”

 

“Two things I noticed about both of them: They’re very competitive, and they care about their teammates. When you have those two qualities, you will never have problems with me as the coach and you’ll never have problems with your teammates,” Brooks said. “With that being said, they’re like brothers, and you’re going to have arguments. If you don’t have an argument as an NBA team, that’s odd.”

The post Scott Brooks: ‘[John Wall and Brad Beal] Are Like Brothers’ appeared first on SLAMonline.

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John Wall: Bradley Beal and I tend ‘to dislike each other on the court’

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John Wall and Bradley Beal are the two centerpieces of the Washington Wizards’ future, but apparently they don’t always see eye-to-eye on the floor.

In a recent interview with CSN Mid-Atlantic, Wall hinted at a bit of an on-court rift between him and his backcourt partner Beal.

“I think a lot of times we have a tendency to dislike each other on the court,” Wall said. “We got to be able to put that to the side. If you miss somebody on one play or don’t have something go right … as long as you come to each other and talk. If I starting arguing with somebody I’m cool. I’m just playing basketball.

“Now that you have your money you got to go out there and improve your game,” Wall continued in reference to Beal. “I want you to be an All-Star just as much as I’m an All-Star. If we were playing well as a tandem like the other two superstars that play together as a backcourt, play as a tandem, one night it’s going to be his night, one night it’s going to be mine, some nights it might be both of us. Those are nights it’s going to be tough to beat us.”

Beal, who signed a max deal this summer to remain in Washington, agreed saying, “It’s tough because we’re both alphas. It’s always tough when you have two guys who firmly believe in themselves, who will bet on themselves against anybody else, who want to be that guy. We both can be that guy.

“Sometimes I think we both lose sight of the fact that we need each other,” Beal elaborated. “I wouldn’t be in the situation I’m in without John. John wouldn’t be in the situation he’s in without me, without the rest of the team. It goes hand-in-hand so it’s kind of a pride thing.”

Such differences can be inevitable with two ball-dominant guards trying to co-exist and can sometimes lead to the demise of the partnership (see: Derrick Rose-Jimmy Butler, Goran Dragic-Eric Bledsoe, Rajon Rondo-Monta Ellis, etc.). But for every backcourt pairing that has failed to make it work, it seems like an equal number have come to a mutual understanding and used that to achieve great success (e.g. Stephen Curry-Klay Thompson, Kyle Lowry-DeMar DeRozan, Chris Paul-J.J. Redick, etc.).

Wall and Beal are still young (25 and 23, respectively) and haven’t had as much time to build an on-court rapport as you might think with Beal’s injury history and Wall’s own occasional bumps and bruises. With a new head coach in Scott Brooks who was an effective manager of egos during his time in Oklahoma City, hopefully this is all just part of the maturation process for the hyper-talented duo.

Image Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

H/T SLAMOnline

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Report: Tre Mason made statements about Al Qaeda, punched hole in wall

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Los Angeles Rams running back Tre Mason had an encounter with police last month that reportedly ended with him being ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation.

Police were called to Mason’s home in Florida on July 23 after his family reported that the 22-year-old had his latest in a string of “bizarre and angry outbursts.” TMZ obtained the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office police report that was filed following that incident, and it states that it was Mason’s mother who called. She claimed Tre was “acting unusual and making irrational statements.”

When police arrived, they say Mason threatened to call the White House and have them all fired. Mason also supposedly made statements about Al Qaeda and had a laceration on his hand that he refused medical attention for. Police noticed a hole had been punched in the wall of Mason’s bedroom and a vase and lamp were broken.

The officer who filed the police report wrote that he does not believe Mason is in the right frame of mind to be making decisions for himself.

“I believe that Trence does not have the [redacted] ability to make decisions at this time and therefore he was transported to [redacted] where he was treated for the laceration and admitted for evaluation under the [redacted],” the report stated.

Police have reportedly been called to Mason’s home at least five times since March. Prior to that, he was arrested and had several charges filed against him.

Over the weekend, Rams coach Jeff Fisher revealed that Mason has not shown up to training camp and no one has heard from him. The team is concerned about the former Auburn star’s well-being. You can read Fisher’s full comments on the situation here.

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Scot McCloughan injures hand hitting wall in frustration after learning of injury

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The injuries to the Washington Redskins are having negative effects on the team beyond just the players who are hurt.

Washington GM Scot McCloughan actually injured his hand punching a wall in frustration after learning that first-round pick Josh Doctson had an Achilles’ tendon injury.

Former Washington TE Chris Cooley, who is a radio host, shared the story of McCloughan’s injury on ESPN 980.

“I said, ‘What happened to your hand?"” Cooley recalled on the radio, via the Richmond Times-Dispatch. “He said, when I found out about Doctson – which they thought was going to be much worse, the Doctson injury, apparently it isn’t going to be as bad – I punched the wall.”

You can see McCloughan’s bandaged hand in these photos:

NOW! #Redskins GM Scot McCloughan with @kevins980 & @thecooleyzone on @espn980 & the ESPN App! pic.twitter.com/hnHAof1TX0

— ESPN 980 (@espn980) July 29, 2016

Chris Cooley says Scot McCloughan hurt his hand after hearing about Josh Doctson"s injury: https://t.co/rkVZP0dpWT pic.twitter.com/tMgTtg5DbJ

— michael phillips (@michaelpRTD) July 29, 2016

Doctson injured himself in May but his injury isn’t supposed to be that bad. Though the former TCU receiver opened training camp on the physically unable to perform list, he is just day-to-day, which is much better than what McCloughan originally thought.

As for McCloughan, hopefully that hand injury goes away sooner than later.

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