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Wizards beat Grizzlies, but Bradley Beal not stepping up

Today's Wake-Up Call looks at why Bradley Beal hasn't lived up to his end of the bargain, John Wall's issue with Memphis resting starters, and the team's need for better balance.

By Ryan Gracia Mar 13, 2015, 11:13am EDT

1. Wiz take down Griz, 107-87

With Memphis resting three starters, the Wizards shook off a forgettable first quarter and crushed the Grizzlies on national television, 107-87. John Wall (21 points, six assists, seven rebounds) and Marcin Gortat (22 points, nine boards, three steals, and three blocks) led the way, helped by an efficient 17 points on seven shots from Paul Pierce.

To the recaps!

2. Bradley Beal needs to pick his game up

Beal needs to stop taking pullup, midrange shots

Jake Whitacre

Bradley Beal is a young, dynamic shooter the Wizards can build around, but the time has come for someone to get him to stop taking shots he's not good at shooting.

More on Beal's struggles

Beal needs to stop taking pullup, midrange shots

Beal proclaimed he and Wall as the best backcourt in the NBA before the regular season began. Since then, he's missed plenty of time dealing with a broken wrist, another stress fracture issue, and a lack of sharp-shooting that should be the strength of his game. Wall, on the other hand, is still waiting for Beal to get up to his All-Star level.

3. Wall takes offense to resting Grizzlies

A nationally televised game against the second-best team in the Western Conference should be enough to get excited. But when the Memphis Grizzlies were missing four of their five starters (three resting, one injured), their opponent can't help but feel a sense of disrespect.

Via J. Michael of Comcast SportsNet:

"That's how I see it," said John Wall when asked if he felt Memphis disrespected them by trotting out a starting lineup of Beno Udrih, Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, JaMychal Green and Kosta Koufos. "They sit them, I don't really know the reason why. We're a team that's on the rise and teams respect us now and then they don't respect us. We just wanted to come out and play basketball the right way and get the win no matter what."