New Lakers Guard Patrick Beverley Viciously Trolls LeBron James & Anthony Davis

Lakers stars Anthony Davis (left) and LeBron James

Getty Lakers stars Anthony Davis (left) and LeBron James

New Los Angeles Lakers guard Patrick Beverley viciously trolled stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis on September 6th during his first media availability since being acquired by the purple and gold from the Utah Jazz.

When Spectrum SportsNet’s Mike Bresnahan told Beverley that he’ll be playing with James and Davis, Beverley fired back and said, “They will be playing with me. I made the playoffs last year. They didn’t. It’s a difference.”

Beverley, who was acquired by the Lakers from the Jazz for Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson, helped the Minnesota Timberwolves reach the playoffs last season. The Chicago native appeared in 58 games and averaged 9.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists.

Meanwhile, the Lakers didn’t even qualify for the play-in tournament in 2021-22 despite having James, Davis and Russell Westbrook. Los Angeles went only 33-49.


Beverley: I’m Glad I Get to Play with LeBron & Davis

After poking fun at James and Davis for missing the playoffs last season, Beverley told Bresnahan that he’s glad he’s teammates with LBJ and AD, who won the 2020 championship together over the Miami Heat in six games at the Walt Disney World bubble.

“I’m glad that, you know, we get a chance to play with each other than, you know, anything else,” Beverley said. “I’m excited to get the battling going. …I was with the Miami Heat. I was a rookie. He (LeBron) was there. So to come around, you know, at the tail end of his career, right in the prime of mine, I’m super excited.”

Beverley has career averages of 8.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers and Timberwolves. He has never missed the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Lakers have struggled since winning the 2020 title. They lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2021 playoffs and missed the postseason altogether last campaign.

James, a four-time MVP and four-time Finals MVP, averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists last season in 56 starts. He turns 38 in December and is 1,326 points away from passing Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.

Davis, who signed a five-year, $190 million contract with the Lakers in December 2020, averaged 23.2 points and 9.9 rebounds in 2021-22. The eight-time All-Star only played in 40 games, though. He missed 17 consecutive games from late December until late January after suffering an MCL sprain in his left knee against the Timberwolves. Then in mid-February, Davis sustained a right mid-foot sprain versus the Jazz, causing him to miss 18 straight games.


Lakers Will Run Offense Through Davis

According to an August 9th report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, new Los Angeles head coach Darvin Ham told James that he plans on running the Lakers’ offense through Davis next season. James had no problem with Ham’s decision.

“Furthermore, the first-year head coach said one wrinkle he will implement and stick with is having the offense run through Anthony Davis, and James concurred, sources said,” Haynes reported. “The team has been encouraged with Davis’ offseason progression and believe he’ll be in optimum shape to avoid serious injuries and carry a heavier load.”

CBS Sports is predicting that the Lakers will start Westbrook, Beverley, Juan Toscano-Anderson, James and Davis next season if Westbrook isn’t traded before training camp starts.

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