The Washington Wizards have gone from dormant cellar-dwellers to perennial Eastern Conference contenders seemingly overnight and a big catalyst for their shift in trajectory has been the arrival of shooting guard John Wall, and that regular season success has even translated into postseason success for a franchise that had seen only one postseason series win in the last decade before this most recent run.

Beal has become everything that a modern day franchise can want in a high-end draft pick. At 6'5", he has prototypical size for his position of shooting guard. He has demonstrated, at a young age, that he is ready for the rigors that come with the life of a professional athlete. By all accounts Beal is a hard worker in honing his craft, and also has managed to stay out of controversy, when many of his millennial professional athlete peers succumb to the pitfalls of living life in the lime light in the 21st century news cycle.

As glowing of a report that can be made about Beal off the court, his on-court scouting report is what actually gives the Wizards cause for concern with handing out a max contract to Beal just two years after shelling out big cash for Wall, the team's All-Star point guard.

But that only tells half the story.

Beal By the Numbers

Beal finished last regular season as the 94th ranked player according to our Kevin Durant, a Washington D.C. area native, likely entering free agency in 2016, the Wizards have fully committed to positioning themselves to make a run at the former league MVP next summer. If the Wizards were to give Beal a max contract extension before the October 31st deadline, he would have a cap hold of $20.9 million, but if they were to remain idle on Beal's contract status he would only have a cap hold of $14.2 million once he hits restricted free agency.

Every dollar counts when it comes to creating cap space not only to sign Durant but also to field a decent roster around him, so it only makes sense to go into next summer with all of the resources available.

Beal has proven to be a very interesting young asset in the association but has yet to show the overall consistency and efficiency that would make him a no-brainer max contract candidate. The Wizards are not dire under any pressure to give him this extension because they can match any outside offer he receives next season.

Beal can help out his own situation by betting on himself and allowing his playoff growth to translate to regular season results.