Patrick Beverley has made a name for himself in the NBA as a tenacious, occasionally controversial defender who has helped various teams over his 11-year career. He's also never been afraid to speak his mind, and the upcoming free agent who finished this season with the Chicago Bulls recently dropped an interesting opinion about his fellow NBA players.
While speaking on The Pat Bev Podcast, Beverley said that, in his opinion, 50 percent of NBA players do not love basketball. The sentiment seems inflammatory when you first hear it, but Beverley broke down exactly what he meant, comparing the necessary NBA preparation to that of a romantic courtship. Before you even go on a first date, he said, you have to buy flowers, make restaurant reservations, wash the car, etc. Then Beverley explained how that translates to the NBA.
"Now can you have all that energy and put it in basketball?" Beverley said. "Is it watching film? Is it extra shots? Is it free throws? Is it working on off-hand s---? Is it working on shots that you might not even use, just to have something in your back pocket? Preparation -- how prepared are you? Do you know the coach's philosophy? Do you know what the coaches want from you? It might be different from what you want from you."
Beverley was then asked if he's ever had teammates who he felt didn't love the game, and he said, somewhat surprisingly, that they're usually the ones who are extremely talented.
"Most teammates I know who don't love basketball are the really f---ing good ones -- are the most skilled ones. It's the wildest s--- in the world," Beverley said. "Preparation is different when you got so much skill. You could just show up to the game and get a m-----f---ing 30, 40. That might work against other teams who aren't that good. But you can't do that in the playoffs."
It makes sense that Beverley would take preparation so seriously. He's not one of the naturally gifted athletes that he says can still perform at a high level without putting in the work. After starting his career overseas, Beverley has been an important part of winning teams like the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Clippers while making the NBA All-Defensive team three times. You don't have that kind of career trajectory without passion and work ethic, which Beverley clearly values.
Beverley started the 2022-23 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, before being traded to and later waived by the Orlando Magic before the trade deadline. He then signed with the Bulls, where he averaged 5.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 22 games. The 34-year-old will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
