Beal shines as Wizards take down Bulls

Shooting guard Bradley Beal scored 31 points as Washington Wizards beat Chicago Bulls 134-125 at their home turf on Saturday.

This was the first match between the two teams since the Wizards traded Otto Porter Jr. to the Bulls for Jabari Parker , Bobby Portis , and a 2023 second-round draft pick on Friday.

Parker contributed 20 points and Portis posted a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds against their former side.

“No bad feelings,” said Portis after the win.

“Now I’m with a team right now and we’re in a playoff hunt and we are a couple of games back from making the playoffs. So, now I’m really focused on that.”

Wizards head coach Scott Brooks praised Parker, saying he was “a good fit for us.”

“It’s something that we need. We need bench scoring. We need a guy like that and we found him,” Brooks said after the game.

The Washington team are now third in the Southeastern Division with a 24-32 record.

The Bulls were led by Zach LaVine, who netted 26 points.

Lauri Markkanen posted a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds, while the Brazilian Cristiano Felicio scored five points in the 12 minutes he played.

Moreover, Felicio made two of two field goals, collected five rebounds and made one assist for the Bulls, who suffered their seventh loss in nine games.

The team from Chicago, with a 13-43 record, are second last in the Central Division.

Washington are headed to Detroit on Monday for a crucial matchup Detroit Piston -- the team that is directly ahead of them in the standings.

The Wizards trail the ninth place Pistons by two games, and eighth place Miami by two and a half.