John Wall: 'We have a tendency to dislike each other on the court'

Familiarity doesn't always breed friendship, and that's something Washington Wizards stars John Wall and Bradley Beal are hoping to finally smooth over heading into this season.

Though they've been paired together since Beal's rookie season of 2012, the duo admit they haven't exactly found common ground yet.

"I think a lot of times we have a tendency to dislike each other on the court. ... We got to be able to put that to the side," Wall, the 2010 No. 1 overall pick, told Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. "If you miss somebody on one play or don't have something go right ... as long as you come to each other and talk. If I start arguing with somebody I'm cool. I'm just playing basketball."

Beal agreed with the root of the pair's problem.

"Sometimes I think we both lose sight of the fact that we need each other. I wouldn't be in the situation I'm in without John," Beal told the network. "John wouldn't be in the situation he's in without me, without the rest of the team. It goes hand-in-hand so it's kind of a pride thing. We got to [hash] out our pride, figure out what our goals are individually, help each other achieve those goals, figure out what our team goal is, where do we see ourselves five years from now, 10 years from now and go from there."

The team goal is to rebound from a 41-41 season that saw the Wizards go from being a team on the rise in the Eastern Conference to missing out on the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season. New Washington coach Scott Brooks will be tasked with getting his two stars, ages 25 (Wall) and 23 (Beal) on the same page.

"I think with Coach Brooks coming in he's going to hold everybody accountable starting with me," Wall said. "Just make sure everybody know what their role is. If everybody buys into their role, we'll be fine."

Part of the problem, according to Beal, may be that the two young guards are so alike.

"It's tough because we're both alphas," Beal said. "It's always tough when you have two guys who firmly believe in themselves, who will bet on themselves against anybody else, who want to be that guy. We both can be that guy."

With Beal signing a five-year, $128 million max contract this offseason and Wall in the middle of an $80 million deal that runs through the 2018 season, the two still have time to get things on track in D.C.