NBA News: Washington Wizards lose to Chicago Bulls despite Bradley Beal's career-high 53 points

The Washington Wizards lost 126-117 to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday night, in what was their second straight defeat after the All-Star break.

In what should have been a relatively easy win, the Wizards were at one point trailing by 20 points in the game. It was certainly not pretty for the team, as head coach Scott Brooks said it himself. The team "played soft" in terms of defense, which has been a huge issue since the start of the season.

All-Star snub Bradley Beal stated himself that he needed to play better defensively, who had himself a stellar night. Beal passed Jeff Malone on the Wizards' all-time scoring list and scored a career-high 53 points. Hopefully, the Wizards can bounce back later this week. Nonetheless, here is an analysis of Sunday night's loss.

Even with all his leading and production on the court, it wasn't enough for Beal to help win the game on Sunday night. Beal scored a career-high 53 points tonight, shooting more efficiently than he did against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Beal went 15-27 FG, 18-20 FT, and 5-11 3PT. He added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block along with those stats.

It was unfortunate to see Beal record a career-high in a loss, but he certainly will continue to put up points against teams no matter what. Hopefully he can score a new career-high with a win later this season.

Davis Bertans, nicknamed the "Latvian Laser," has been sneaky since representing the Wizards in the All-Star 3-point contest. Tonight, he scored 22 points, going 7-15 FG, 3-3 FT, and 5-11 3PT. He played 37 minutes, which was certianly high number considering how Brooks rotates his squad. This was likely an anomally for Brooks, who certainly should be considered to have his job on the line after the last 2 perfomances.

The Wizards have a back-to-back, hosting the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night. Tune-in at 7:00 PM ET.