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Chris Bosh says Wizards can ‘compete for a championship’ with right coach originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

After one of the worst starts to a season in franchise history, the Wizards were able to do much more than we expected.

That is, at least in part, a testament to the coaching ability of the now departed Scott Brooks. But it is in large part due to the incredible talent and leadership of Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook who, at times, seemed to will the Wizards to victory last season when their backs were against the wall. 

After Washington’s first-round loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, both members of the Wizards All-Star backcourt duo acknowledged that if it were up to them, Brooks would remain the head coach. But they also acknowledged the fact that those decisions don’t fall on them, but rather Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard.

With the hunt for Brooks’ predecessor in full swing, the question is whether or not Beal and Westbrook should have a say in who will be named head coach in the coming weeks.

“You kind of do have to, in my opinion, get some sort of direction from your players, because I think the Wizards have what it takes to really compete for a championship.” Chris Bosh said on Thursday when asked that question on ESPN’s The Jump.

As an 11-time All-Star who teamed up with LeBron James and Dwayne Wade to form the “Big 3” in Miami, it comes as no surprise that Bosh is an advocate for players controlling their own destiny in whatever way they can.

But his suggestion that the Wizards are ready to compete for a championship with the right coach at the helm took Rachel Nichols and Zach Lowe by surprise.

“I don’t think it’s any question that with Russ and with Bradley that they have tremendous talent. I think they need a head coach to come in there and really perform right away. You want their attitudes good coming into training camp. You want their confidence and I think sometimes their recommendations and their voices, I think they should be heard,” Bosh added.

Bosh has set the bar high for a team that, despite making it to the play-in tournament, finished the season with a losing record for the third consecutive year. 

But looking past their record, Bosh certainly has a point that the relationship between Beal, Westbrook and whoever emerges out of the interview process must be solid if the Wizards are to come close to meeting the high bar that they have set for themselves.

That bar for Bosh, he reiterated, is to win it all next year.

“They can put themselves in a very strong position really, like I said before, to compete for a championship,” Bosh said. “In my mind, they’re right there.”

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