In recent years, many have made a lot of Washington Wizards’ stars John Wall and Bradley Beal not getting along. The chatter begun when Wall and Beal admitted to their “tendency to dislike each other on the court” during a 2016 interview with NBC Sports Washington.
However, those times were many moons ago. Yet, the two cannot shake the stigma that’s followed them ever since.
Wall recently appeared on “All the Smoke” with former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. Wall stressed the two’s bond that goes beyond basketball.
While discussing the passing of his mom in December, Wall recounted to when Beal skipped the team flight from Charlotte back to DC to join him in Raleigh at the hospital with his mother.
“People say they don’t know our relationship between me and Brad [Beal] because everybody was like, ‘Well y’all don’t get along.’ Bro, when i got the phone call the first person that came down to my hotel room and hang out with me was Brad. [He] come to hold me like, ‘You’re my brother.'”
“… After they played that game against Charlotte, they lost, Brad didn’t even get on the team plane. He drove down to be with me in North Carolina for the next two or three days. You see what I’m saying?”
John Wall | “All the Smoke”
Wall stressed Beal didn’t have to do that. He could have just called. But, he came down to visit and stay with him. He stressed Beal was somebody beyond basketball “I call my brother.”
Wall and Beal have tried recently to downplay their supposed beef but their efforts have fallen to deaf ears.
Wall is currently rehabbing towards returning to the court after a ruptured Achilles that has kept him out of action since December 2018. Meanwhile, Beal has thrived in his absence individually, averaging career highs of 30.5 points and 6.1 assists per game.
However, the Wizards as a team have not been as successful as they were when both their star guards were on the floor together. Beal recently signed a two-year, $72 million extension and Wall inked a four-year, $170 million super-max extension that could keep the pair together through the 2022-23 season.
Hopefully, in that time they can dispel the public’s notion they don’t get along.
