Nets' Kevin Durant Praises Wizards' Bradley Beal as 'A Hall of Fame, All-Star Player'
Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant has high praise for Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal.
"He's a Hall of Fame, All-Star player. Take that away from your team, you're trying to figure out where that impact's gonna come from," Durant told reporters after Beal missed Monday's Nets-Wizards game with a hamstring injury.
Beal has been limited by injury to 18 games this season but is in his most efficient scoring campaign, shooting a career-high 52.2 percent. While his scoring is down to 22.9 points per game, his lowest since 2017-18, that's largely because a strong Wizards offense has allowed him to tone down his attacks to the rim.
As far as Beal's Hall of Fame credentials, that's probably a stretch. He's made just three All-Star teams and one All-NBA team, and the Wizards have not gotten past the second round of the playoffs during his tenure with the franchise.
Even though the Basketball Hall of Fame has a lower barrier of entry than its football and baseball counterparts, Beal would have to write a strong second half to his career to make it to Springfield, Massachusetts.
That said, Beal is the type of player who can function in any lineup in any situation. He's a perfect fit for the Hall of Very Very Good, just not quite on the HOF level.
