Beal and Vesely Shine in Summer League Debut

In a rather uneventful game that was littered with sloppy and inconsistent basketball, the Hawks blew out the Wizards 102-82 in the team's first summer league game of 2012.  I know the score doesn't matter, I know these games don't count, so let's get to the real reason why we found ourselves watching: Bradley Beal.

The kid started off hot. He showed off his great shooting ability by shooting 4 for 6 from the field including a a three pointer. He showcased some impeccable dribbling skills by maneuvering through various double teams, and found a way to distribute the ball.  Simply put, He looked like a player who was drafted 3rd in the draft.

Then came the third quarter. A rather unforgettable one for the Wizards first round pick, where he shot 1 for 7 from field and wasn't comfortable. I wouldn't say his game struggled in the 3rd but I think it was just a product of him simply missing shots. You make some, you miss some. He even admitted after the game that there were moments where he had a "brain freeze" out on the court. That's to be expected. All in all, the team played bad transition defense and as Coach Sam Cassel so bluntly stated after the game: "We just got manhandled."

The best thing I heard from Bradley Beal came in the post game interview when he talked about how he got in to the flow of the game, Beal addressed it by saying:

"I love getting the other guys involved. Once they get going, I'll get going."

So great to see such maturity out of a 19 year old. Oh and by the way, he lead all scorers with 22 points.

Probably the biggest surprise from today's game was the play of Jan Vesely. Widely criticized for his lack of a jump shot last season, Jan started the game 3/3 from the field and all the shots came from 15 feet out.  Even more ironic was the fact that of the 4 shots he missed, 3 of them were dunks!  In case you don't follow the Wizards and/or Jan Vesely, Jan shot basically 500% when he was 2 inches from the rim or closer.

That certainly will hurt his dunk percentage. #dunkingninja.

I've found that being able to shoot the rock isn't so much about fundamentals as it about having the confidence to put up the shot. Jan showed that he wasn't afraid to take the shot and made a lot of great hustle plays on the defensive end as well. Hopefully that confidence stays with him throughout the course of the off season and translates into offensive success for this team. The team needs him to be more productive offensively.  He even got a standing ovation from the audience when he was taken out of the game.

For receiving his 10th foul.

#vegassummerleague

All in all, not a great day for the team, but we saw marginal signs of hope and improvement. I'm excited to see how they come out tomorrow against the Rockets!