Getty Patrick Beverley
Former Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Patrick Beverley is an unrestricted free agent after getting waived by the Orlando Magic and the All-NBA defender issued a cryptic tweet about joining a purple and gold rival.
Beverley, who was traded by the Lakers to the Magic for big man Mo Bamba, teased the idea of going to the Golden State Warriors to play with four-time champion Draymond Green.
Beverley put up 6.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game with the Lakers in 45 starts while shooting 40.2% from the field, 34.8% from beyond the arc and 78.0% from the free-throw line. He had a plus-minus of -90.
Beverley, Russell Westbrook, Thomas Bryant, Damian Jones and Juan Toscano-Anderson were moved at the trade deadline by the Lakers, who acquired Bamba, D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Davon Reed.
Patrick Beverley on Why the Lakers Struggled: ‘It Was Other Sh*t’
Beverley said on his podcast that the reason the Lakers didn’t win more games while he was on the team was because of “other sh*t.” The Chicago native stated that the vibes weren’t always the best.
“It wasn’t basketball,” Beverley said. “It wasn’t basketball. It wasn’t basketball. It was other sh*t. But other sh*t that you really can’t like pin or point out. You know, comes and goes. You know, a little bit here, a little bit there. … The vibes were sometimes on, sometimes off. Inconsistent vibes lead to inconsistent play.”
The Lakers are in 13th place in the Western Conference standings with a record of 27-32. They have gone 2-2 since the trade deadline, although it’s worth mentioning they are 2-1 with their new players in the lineup. Los Angeles has defeated Golden State and New Orleans with its revamped roster.
“I like the guys that we have coming in,” Lakers superstar LeBron James said after the Lakers defeated the Pelicans on February 15. “I mean, it’s going to take some time for us to get to know one another, but I know that they play the game at a high level.”
Patrick Beverley to the Bulls?
K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago reported on February 13 that Beverley’s camp and the Chicago Bulls have had conversations. Beverley, who played high school basketball in Chicago, tweeted that playing at home would be a “vibe.”
Beverley has career averages of 8.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Lakers. He has never missed the playoffs in his career.
Los Angeles earned an “A-” from Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale for trading Beverley to the Magic for Bamba, who is only 24.
“Beverley remained expendable even after Rob Pelinka shipped out Russell Westbrook,” Favale wrote on February 9. “The Lakers just acquired Malik Beasley and D’Angelo Russell, and both Lonnie Walker IV (when healthy) and Dennis Schröder have been flat-out better. Bamba, meanwhile, is a potentially super-useful, dual-purpose asset. The concept of his rim protection and three-point shooting play nicely in all sorts of lineups. The Lakers can deploy him as the lone big or in tandem with one of Anthony Davis or Jarred Vanderbilt.”