The Washington Wizards have been missing a scoring spark off the bench for quite some time. Jordan Crawford and Glen Rice Jr. were supposed to fill that void, but we all know how their careers in D.C. ended.

Last year, Rasual Butler and Kevin Seraphin did a solid job of providing scoring for the second unit, but the Wizards were still missing a guard that could take some pressure off Bradley Beal.

John Wall and Beal were virtually the only players on the roster that could create their own shot. Ramon Sessions did much of the ball handling for the second unit after the trade deadline, but it was clear that Ernie Grunfeld needed to acquire another guard to supplement the offense.

Once the off-season began, the Wizards were rumored to have interest in a number of guards that could help in that regard. Ultimately, Grunfeld opted to use most of the mid-level exception to sign Alan Anderson — a guard/forward known for his scoring ability. In addition to Anderson, Grunfeld signed Baltimore native Gary Neal to a one year contract.

Anderson has yet to play a single minute for Washington. He underwent his second ankle procedure during training camp, but has made progress. Right now, the Washington Wizards have relied on Neal for much of the scoring off the bench in the absence of Anderson and others.

Prior to the beginning of the season, I questioned the Neal signing.

Randy Wittman isn’t an offensive-minded coach, and while I applaud the change he made this season, it’s pretty obvious that he still has some work to do before the Washington Wizards truly take the next step offensively.

More importantly, Wittman has trouble coaching players that have shoot-first mentalities.

Neal has been an inconsistent player throughout his career, but has managed to crack the rotation wherever he’s played.

He’s crafty, can scoring in numerous ways and has that gunner mindset that is always intriguing. Neal is either going to be really good or bad.

There’s no in-between, really.

After eight games with the Washington Wizards, Neal has been on-and-off. He’s giving Washington some flexibility with his ball handling since Wittman is capable of playing him along side other guards in small-ball lineups, but he’s really struggled with the one thing he was brought in to do: hit three point shots.

Neal is making less than 30 percent of his three point shots this season. He’s taken ill-advised shots in transition and has yet to find his rhythm.

Given injuries, Washington isn’t nearly as deep as they hoped to be. Still, if Neal continues to struggle from deep, he could find himself out of Wittman’s rotation.

Last night against the Orlando Magic, Garrett Temple got the start in place of the injured Beal. Normally, Wittman would’ve started Neal, whose game resembles Beal’s more than Temple’s does. That wasn’t the case, though.

Temple made the most of his opportunity, scoring a career-high 18 points. He played 31 minutes and made three of his six three point attempts. For all his flaws, Wittman knows what to expect from Temple. He’s a gritty, willing defender and he’s able to knock down the occasional three point shot. Right now, the same cannot be said for Neal.

Kelly Oubre Jr. has also gotten more playing time than we originally expected. The rookie played 26 minutes against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday and has given Wittman an extra lift on the defensive end of the floor.

At this point, Wittman will probably have to weigh the options. Is Neal’s potential scoring outburst worth the poor defense and inefficiency? He’s taken pressure off Wall, Beal and Sessions with his ball handling, but he’s left a lot to be desired in virtually every other area.

It wouldn’t make sense to keep Neal in the rotation just because he was one of their key additions during the summer. That might’ve been the saddest statement ever. Gary Neal. Key Addition. Yikes. If someone like Temple, who wasn’t expected to be in the rotation, is playing better defense and knocking down shots at a more consistent rate, then Neal will find himself on the bench.

The Washington Wizards will play the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday and Beal’s status is still up in the air. If he returns, he’ll obviously take a spot in the starting five. After that, though, the rotation becomes a bit murky. Will Wittman end up playing Temple over Neal in the future? One thing’s for sure: Temple finds a way to play every season, even though no one expects it.