Bradley Beal and Jayson Tatum are currently both stars in the NBA, but their connection goes much deeper than that. They are longtime friends that went to the same high school.
For any player in the NBA, playing with their friends must be appealing. It makes sense that playing on the same team with people one has a close bond with can make a player perform better simply due to the comfort level.
Jayson Tatum was asked about the potential of him recruiting Bradley Beal by Abby Chin of NBC Sports. Tatum admitted that the pair have “talked about it plenty of times”, and that they “both like the idea of it”.
Just reported @NBCSBoston — Here’s what Jayson Tatum told me this morning when I asked him about Bradley Beal: pic.twitter.com/xVAsOBycfk
— Abby Chin (@tvabby) October 30, 2021
Do you even broach the subject of recruiting when talking to Bradley Beal?
We’ve talked about it plenty of times. I think, moreso, just thinking about how cool it would be to play with him. Just how we grew up and how close we are. It’s something I’ve always dreamed about. We didn’t get the opportunity with the USA team, but we did get to play with each other during the All-Star game last year which was a special moment. You know what I mean. Just like playing in the NBA with your big brother. Who wouldn’t want to do that?
What does he say in response?
There’s a lot that goes into that. Obviously. And there’s decisions that he’d have to make, what’s best for his family. The idea of it, we both like the idea of it for sure.
There is no question that a Bradley Beal and Jayson Tatum duo would be fearsome, but it is obviously far from certain that it will happen in the future. The Washington Wizards are 5-1 currently, and Bradley Beal has previously stated that he wants to win with the Washington Wizards. Beal’s situation in Washington is very good, and just because a friend is recruiting him, it doesn’t mean that he has to leave.
However, it is not impossible for the duo to team up, and it’s clear that Jayson Tatum is a big fan of the idea. We’ll just have to wait and see if it happens, but Tatum is certainly doing his part in the recruiting department.
