Patrick Beverley has made a name for himself in the NBA as a tenacious, sometimes controversial defenseman who has helped several teams during his 11-year career. He’s also never been afraid to speak his mind, and the soon-to-be free agent who finished this season with the Chicago Bulls recently let loose an interesting take on his fellow NBA players.
While speaking on The Pat Bev Podcast, Beverley said that in his opinion, 50 percent of NBA players don’t like basketball. The sentiment seems inflammatory when you first hear it, but Beverley broke down exactly what he meant, comparing the necessary NBA prep to that of a romantic courtship. Before you even go on a first date, he said, you need to buy flowers, make restaurant reservations, wash the car, etc. Then Beverley explained how that translates to the NBA.
“Can you have all that energy right now and put it into basketball?” said Beverly. “Is it watching the movie? Is it extra shots? Is it free throws? Does it work on clumsy s—? Does it work on shots you might not even use, just to have something in your back pocket? Preparation — how prepared are you? Do you know the philosophy of the coach? Do you know what the coaches want from you? It may be different from what you want from you.”
Beverley was then asked if he’s ever had any teammates he doesn’t think liked the game, and he said, somewhat surprisingly, that they’re usually the ones who are extremely talented.
“Most of the teammates I know who don’t like basketball are the really good ones — are the most skilled. It’s the wildest s— in the world,” Beverley said. “Preparation is different when you have that much skill. You could just come to the game and get a m—–f—ing 30, 40. That could work against other teams that aren’t as 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 those naturally gifted athletes who he says can still perform at a high level without working hard. After starting his career overseas, Beverley was a key part of winning teams such as the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Clippers while making the NBA All-Defensive team three times. You don’t have a career path like that without a passion and work ethic, which Beverley clearly values.
Beverley began 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 attacker is an unrestricted free agent this season.