Bradley Beal signs with Wizards
Monday, July 9, 2012 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Bradley Beal left the University of Florida after his freshman season to chase the NBA dream. The Washington Wizards made that dream come true with the No. 3 overall pick in the draft.
Now come the perks.
Like 8.3 million of them, for openers.
Beal, the first-team All-Southeastern Conference for the Gators, agreed to terms over the weekend on his rookie contract with the Wizards, who locked up the 6-foot-4, 210-pound shooting guard with a two-year, $8.3 million pact that includes a pair of option seasons on the back end.
The deal cleared the way for Beal to join the club Monday for a four-day mini-camp before a scaled-down version of the team -- including 2011 first-round picks Jan Vesely and Chris Singleton -- heads to Las Vegas for the NBA's summer league.
Washington opens its summer league season Saturday night against Houston, which had three first-round picks in last month's draft: forward Jeremy Lamb (Connecticut) and power forwards Royce White (Iowa State) and Terrence Jones (Kentucky).
Beal, the 2011 Gatorade National High School Player of the Year out of St. Louis, averaged 14.8 points and a team-high 6.7 rebounds for the Gators last season, helping guide the team to a 26-11 record and second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament's regional final round.
