How would Mitchell and Beal fit together? originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
It’s not often the Washington Wizards are mentioned in rumors involving potential blockbuster trades, at least from reliable and legitimate reporters. Whether they are involved in those sorts of talks often or not, the front office is keen on keeping those conversations behind closed doors. Rarely do they get out.
Sometimes they do, though, like when John Wall was traded for Russell Westbrook. That leaked and about a week later it ultimately was proven true.
The point here is the Wizards’Β interest in trading for Jazz star Donovan Mitchell, which was reported by the Athletic on Monday, is a rare occurrence. And whether it is entirely realistic or not given the likely asking price (especially in light of what Utah got for Rudy Gobert), it’s a fun possibility to discuss and dissect.
Among the questions involved is how Mitchell would fit alongside Bradley Beal. Can a Spida share the court with a Panda? Someone call David Attenborough.
Both are three-time All-Stars and elite offensive players, but they also play the same position at shooting guard. The Wizards would have a bit of a non-traditional backcourt with two twos instead of a one and a two.
Let’s look at the offensive end of the floor first. On one hand, there would be some redundancy in that they are both high-usage players. Mitchell was sixth in usage rate last season (32.9%) while Beal would have placed 13th (30.8%) if he played enough games to qualify (per Basketball Reference). For comparison, only one duo featured two teammates in the top-15 in that category last season; Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown of the Celtics. Granted, Boston ended up making the NBA Finals.
A lot of shots would go to two players on the Wizards’ roster and that may not leave much room for whomever the third option would be. That said, offense probably wouldn’t be a problem for Washington because they would have two of the best scoring guards in the league.
Also, Beal has had his best years alongside high-usage players in Wall and Westbrook. On a related note, Beal has had his best seasons playing next to a guard who gets to the rim. Mitchell was 10th among qualified players last season in drives per game (15.2).
In fact, their shot profiles would arguably balance out fairly well. Mitchell is basically an analytics prototype in that he shoots a vast majority of his attempts from three or around the rim. He averaged 9.8 3-point…