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In the final minute of the Wizards’ 101-91 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, though, Beal tried to block a shot by Monta Ellis and wound up with a flagrant-two foul that sparked a minor fracas. (Check out the replay here.) NBA rules stipulate that a player charged with a flagrant-two foul can receive a fine not exceeding $50,000 and/or a suspension by the commissioner. It’s also possible the league can reduce the call to a flagrant-one, which doesn’t come with additional punishment, when it reviews the play. “It was just a foul. I went for the ball but I got a flagrant-two, so it is what it is,” Beal said. “I guess [Brandon Jennings was] defending his teammate, came up and pushed me but it’s just all a part of basketball. It’s physical but it is what it is. I just have to deal with it.” Washington Post

Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, Referees, Bradley Beal 

Jennings took exception to the play and as Beal and Booker tried to help Ellis up, Jennings ran over and with a two-handed shove pushed the Wizards rookie into the camera crews. Booker quickly got Jennings away from Beal, who got up and confronted his opponent but the situation resolved itself quickly as referees separated players. Jennings received a technical foul and was ejected. “He fouled me hard and my teammate reacted,” Ellis said. “To be honest, they never showed the replay – but when somebody is up that high, if you can’t block the shot I don’t think that you should try to make a basketball play at the end of the game like that.” Washington Post

Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, Referees, Bradley Beal 

If you have to deal Harden in exchange for financial breathing room, the dream scenario is to land a sure-thing player in the beginning stages of his rookie deal. A big man trumps a guard. Presti likely started with Anthony Davis before mulling over names like Klay Thompson, Utah's young bigs (Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter), Bradley Beal, Jonas Valanciunas (with Jose Calderon's expiring deal), and maybe one or two others before landing on Houston.1 Thompson would have been an especially nice fit. It's not hard to argue the Thunder could survive the loss of Harden if in return they received an elite shooter capable of some ballhandling duties and at least average defense on the wing. Subtract Harden, and the Thunder don't have much outside shooting on the floor at once; spacing can become an issue for them. Grantland

Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz, Trade, Derrick Favors, James Harden, Enes Kanter, Jonas Valanciunas, Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis, Bradley Beal 

Wizards rookie Bradley Beal has agreed in principle to a shoe deal with Nike, according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein. Terms were not disclosed, but Bartelstein said Beal plans to sign “a multi-year” deal with the brand. “We’re excited about it,” Bartelstein said. Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Sneakers, Bradley Beal 

Casey: Philips: Asked Bradley Beal what he would change his name to if he could (i.e. ochocinco Metta World Peace) he said Batman. Best. Answer. Ever. Twitter

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

Legendary players such as Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar passed along tales of their exploits in the NBA, while another former player, Chris Herren, explained how his career was derailed because of a dependency on drugs. Beal had heard about Herren’s fall when Florida Coach Billy Donovan invited Herren to share his story with the team last season, but the message still resonated. “It’s a powerful story and it helps you actually realize how valuable life is,” Beal said, adding that the entire crash course was informative, especially after just signing a deal that will pay him $4.13 million this season. “I think the biggest thing I’m taking from this, how to handle your finances. Because you hear a lot about people possibly going bankrupt when they’re out of the NBA.” Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Chris Herren, Bradley Beal 

Just as Beal doesn’t plan to get ahead of himself as it relates to money, he also doesn’t plan to arrive at George Mason University for his first official NBA practice with any preconceived notions about his role on the team. “I want to just come in and try to earn everything. I don’t want anything given to me. I want to earn everything and show these guys that I’m a hard worker and I’m a winner,” Beal said. “You know we have a young team, but we have a few vets as well and I just want to come in and try to set the tone and try to get this team back on a winning pace.” Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Chris Herren, Bradley Beal 

Bradley Beal doesn’t really know why he felt compelled to tell Coach Randy Wittman that he wanted the Wizards to take him third after his pre-draft workout. “It just felt like the place for me,” Beal said later. “It was the best workout I had, and it was the first one. It just felt right. The city is great and I figured it was a great opportunity to come in and have an impact with the organization. I love Ernie [Grunfeld, the team president] and Ted [Leonsis, the owner], as well and the whole coaching staff here is great. I had a bond with everybody immediately.” Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

“It just felt like the place for me,” Beal said later. “It was the best workout I had, and it was the first one. It just felt right. The city is great and I figured it was a great opportunity to come in and have an impact with the organization. I love Ernie [Grunfeld, the team president] and Ted [Leonsis, the owner], as well and the whole coaching staff here is great. I had a bond with everybody immediately.” Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

Justin Verrier: And your Las Vegas Summer League "All-Stars": Josh Selby, Damian Lillard, Malcolm Thomas, Bradley Beal, Tobias Harris, John Henson (1/2) Twitter

Summer League, John Henson, Tobias Harris, Bradley Beal, Malcolm Thomas, Josh Selby, Damian Lillard 

When draftniks discuss "picking for need" the intent is usually to plug a positional hole, but when the Wizards selected Florida shooting guard Bradley Beal with the No. 3 pick in June's NBA Draft, they added a player whose personality is decidedly anti-knucklehead. "He don't act like he's 19," Wizards point guard John Wall told CBSSports.com. "He acts like he's been in the league two or three years. It's great to have somebody like that with you." CBSSports.com

Washington Wizards, John Wall, Bradley Beal 

"Everything comes to him, he doesn't press and it all happens in the flow," one Eastern Conference talent evaluator told CBSSports.com. "Even here at Summer League." CBSSports.com

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

Mike Prada: Bradley Beal on his demeanor: "My parents always told me, 'Never let anybody see you sweat.'" Twitter

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

Bradley Beal is now an official NBA player after signing his rookie scale contract with the Wizards. The Wizards drafted the 19-year-old Beal third overall out of Florida two weeks ago in the NBA draft. Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Bradley Beal 

The Las Vegas summer league, which is less than two weeks away, is currently a high priority as the team looks to fill out its roster in time for mini-camp next week. The Wizards expect to have second-year players Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack, and recent draft picks Beal and Satoransky. Satoransky is currently under contract in Spain and would need to receive clearance from FIBA to play for the Wizards. “We have already applied for” clearance, Grunfeld said. “Whether they grant it or not, remains to be seen. You just don’t know.” Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Summer League, Ernie Grunfeld, Jan Vesely, Bradley Beal, Shelvin Mack, Chris Singleton 

Colangelo discussed the nature of forming an Olympic team, in that he starts watching players early in their careers. One guy he likes should sound familiar to Wizards fans. “Beal is a terrific player and has a bright future in the NBA. We’ve got our antennae up on all these young players coming up the pike. We’ll be watching him as he comes into the league and his name is on the board.” CBS Washington

Washington Wizards, Jerry Colangelo, Bradley Beal 

Randy Wittman: The last couple days, basically (Bradley Beal) was the player being talked about the most of teams behind us that wanted to try to trade up to No. 2 to get him. You just wake up every morning and hear more and more chatter of this kid. … I just thought maybe Charlotte, being in the position they are in trying to rebuild their team, that they would maybe just drop back and try to get a couple more assets and build that way. So, actually, when they announced Charlotte’s pick, with Kidd-Gilchrist, we kind of erupted with a bit of surprise.” Sports Radio Interviews

Charlotte Bobcats, Washington Wizards, Draft, Trade, Randy Wittman, Bradley Beal 

Chris Mannix: Bradley Beal has emerged as the clear favorite for Washington at No. 3, sources say. Twitter

Washington Wizards, Trade, Bradley Beal 

The Draft Express report is dead-on: the Wolves did offer Derrick Williams to Charlotte for the No. 2 pick, but were quickly turned down. The target is Florida shooting guard Bradley Beal. ESPN.com

Charlotte Bobcats, Minnesota Timberwolves, Draft, Trade, Derrick Williams, Bradley Beal 

Ernie Grunfeld: On if the pick is between Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Harrison Barnes or Bradley Beal: It’s fair to say at least two of those three players will be there when it’s our turn to pick. Every draft goes in groupings. Obviously everyone knows who the No. 1 pick is going to be, but after that, there is a group of four or five players that will go anywhere from two to six, depending on who is picking. I think those three players are probably in that grouping, as is Thomas Robinson. Washington Post

Washington Wizards, Draft, Ernie Grunfeld, Harrison Barnes, Thomas Robinson, Bradley Beal, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist