John Wall and Bradley Beal may share the Washington Wizards' backcourt, but their relationship could not be more divided. In an interview with CSN's Chris Miller, Wall revealed he and Beal have a lot to work on as they head into their fifth season playing together. "I think a lot of times we have a tendency to dislike each other on the court… We got to be able to put that to the side," Wall said. "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."
Two years ago, Beal told reporters that he and Wall were "definitely the best backcourt in the league." Since then, the Wizards have watched the Golden State Warriors backcourt of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson not lead their team to back-to-back NBA Finals appearances, but at least prove that they are, without a doubt, the best backcourt in the NBA. Without saying their names, the three-time All-Star point guard knows he and Beal need to follow Steph and Klay's blueprint in order to find success in the 2016-17 campaign. "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," Wall said. "Those are nights it’s going to be tough to beat us."
Wall also found a way to toss what could easily be seen as some shade at Beal. "Now that you have your money you got to go out there and improve your game," Wall said. "I want you to be an All-Star just as much as I’m an All-Star." Back in July, the Wizards inked Beal to a five-year, $128 million contract, a lucrative deal for someone who has never represented his conference at an All-Star Game. But it didn't end there. J-Wall even referred to his backcourt mate as his sidekick. "I want it all to be on me. At the same time I want him to be right there with me. He’s my sidekick. I’m A. He’s A-1. He’s right there," Wall said. "That’s something we got to do on the first day of training camp. We have to go in there and understand and get on the same page."
If the Wizards want to make the playoffs anytime soon, it's imperative that these two work out of their issues on the court. If they fail to make that happen, one of them will need to head elsewhere.
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