Randy Wittman must be an avid fan of Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
The Washington Wizards are floundering as a team. At 7-9, they’re owners of the fourth-worst record in the Eastern Conference. Their offense isn’t nearly as potent as it was during the playoffs, and their defense, relative to this season’s field of points-prevention units, has significantly regressed.
Rock bottom came on Wednesday night, during a 108-104 loss to the lowly Los Angeles Lakers. The Wizards were a mess on defense and sloppy on offense, allowing the Lakers to score more than 30 points off turnovers.
Bradley Beal specifically turned in yet another subpar performance. In his seventh game since returning from a left shoulder injury, he shot 3-of-12 from the floor, including just 1-of-4 from three-point range. He is now shooting 40 percent (27.8 percent from deep) over the last seven contests, and it’s visibly impacting him. He was attempting nearly 18 shots per game before the injury; that number has dropped to around 14 since his return.
But don’t worry. Randy Wittman has the cure for Beal’s shoot deficiencies and general hesitation.
Stop thinking.
From Basketball Insiders’ Alex Kennedy:
“I just think – I don’t know – maybe he’s thinking too much; he’s got to pull the trigger, be more aggressive,” Wittman said of Beal. “I think there are opportunities there. I tell the guys, a lot of our turnovers [come when] we turn down opportunities to shoot. We’ve worked it around and then turn [a shot] down and force a drive or something and turn the ball over. You know, I’ve been in the league 32, 33, 34 years – it’s been so long, I don’t know. But usually, you’ve got to tell a guy to stop shooting rather than shoot [more]. He’s got to just not think. He’s thinking probably a little too much right now.”
I’m naturally now thinking about and subsequently watching that surfing scene from Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Surfing instructor Paul Rudd tries to teach Jason Segal how to shred some waves by telling him to do less, because sometimes, “the less you do, the more you do.”
You’re welcome in advance:
The point: Once Bradley Beal stops thinking and starts doing less, he’ll actually be doing more.
I think.
Maybe.
Probably not.
Fine, definitely not.
Who am I kidding, I don’t know.
Just start shooting more, Bradley. That’s the point.
