- The Washington Times - Wednesday, October 26, 2022

As he scored bucket after bucket in the second quarter of Tuesday’s 120-99 win over the Detroit Pistons, Will Barton had no idea that star Bradley Beal went back to the locker room. The flurry, the Washington Wizards wing said, was not an intentional response to step up in Beal’s absence. 

It just worked out that way while Beal was sidelined with back tightness. 

“I didn’t even hear it until after,” Barton said of Beal’s injury. “That’s the craziest (part).” 

Beal returned in the fourth quarter, a relief for a Wizards team that is now 3-1 to start the season. But just as encouraging for Washington was how Barton — picked up in an offseason trade with the Denver Nuggets — gave the Wizards a viable scoring option off the bench, something they have lacked over the past years. 

Barton’s fit with the Wizards has proved to be seamless so far, as has the addition of starting point guard Monte Morris — the other piece the Wizards landed in a July trade that sent guards Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith to Denver. It was no coincidence that Barton’s 13-point outburst in the second also overlapped with Morris on the floor. The two guards were teammates for five seasons together in Denver, creating a familiarity that has helped Washington through the first week.

The trade also reunited Morris and Barton with coach Wes Unseld Jr., who served as an assistant with the Nuggets. In Denver, the two were instrumental role players who contributed to the Nuggets’ rise in the Western Conference — and the Wizards are hoping the duo can provide the same lift as Washington tries to retool.

“That’s the reason they’re here,” Beal said. “To help Wes transition a little bit smoother in how he wants to coach and what he wants to implement into his system. Obviously, you have two guys who know him and know how to play.

“They’re two vets as is, so it wasn’t going to be hard implementing those two guys over here.” 

Last season, Morris and Barton made up Denver’s starting backcourt — with Morris filling in for an injured Jamal Murray (ACL). But this year, Barton is no longer a starter. Instead, Unseld opted to start third-year Deni Avdija at small forward for his defense and have Barton be a playmaker off the bench. 

Unseld said he had a conversation with Barton about the decision. The coach reminded the 31-year-old that it was more important who finishes the game than who starts it, Unseld said. But to Barton, no conversation was necessary — he was on board with the role.

“I’m 11 years in,” said Barton, a former second-round pick. “I’ve been in every role. I’ve been a guy who first came into the league who didn’t play a lot, earned everything. Went from that to becoming a rotational guy to becoming a sixth-man to a starter. So it’s not a role I can’t play. 

“I just try to take pride in doing whatever the coach needs me to do, whatever the team needs me to do.” 

Barton’s answer was noticeably different from how he once responded to the possibility of coming off the bench in 2020, when he told reporters he had “no desire” to be a sixth man for the Nuggets. Barton, though, eventually embraced the role — backing up Michael Porter Jr. for a small stretch before becoming a starter once again.

But Barton, Morris noted, is also at a different stage of his career than even just two years ago. “At this point in our careers, you have dealt with so much adversity,” Morris said. Left unsaid, Barton is in the final year of his contract.

“He’s a professional,” said Morris, who is averaging 9.5 points and 5.3 assists per game this season. “I know what (Barton) brings to this team. When his number is called, that’s what he do — he’s going to step up and make plays.”

After beating the Pistons, Barton said he wanted to come out with an “aggressive mindset.” Days earlier, he said, he felt like the second unit was responsible for Washington’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. “We were the reason we lost that game,” he said. 

So, Barton said he wanted to make sure that didn’t happen again. And he was true to his word. The veteran scored 13 of his 16 points in the second quarter.

“My mentality is to be the ultimate professional,” Barton said. “I can thrive in any role.” 

• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.

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