Finally, the Lakers have done something right this offseason. In a semi-surprising move, the Lakers have acquired former LA Clippers guard Patrick Beverley from the self-destructing Utah Jazz.
I didn’t think Rob Pelinka had the ability to make smart decisions in him anymore. The much-maligned Lakers GM has not only made a smart basketball acquisition for the Lakers, but also didn’t give away the kitchen sink for Beverly. Sure, trading away Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanely Johnson might hurt the team’s depth, but Beverley’s defensive proficiency more than makes up for the pair’s absence.
Simply put, the Lakers had one of the WORST defenses in the NBA last season, which they had yet to correct prior to acquiring Beverley. With the 9th highest defense rating (112.8), the Lakers also gave up the 28th most points/game (115), allowed the 23rd most offensive rebounds/game (46), allowed the 22nd most FGs made/game (47.0%). Oh, and they also gave up 17.1 pts/game off turnovers, which was 24th worst in the NBA.
Yeah, the Lakers were an absolute mess defensively.
But Patrick Beverley should help with improving those horrific stats a lot. Since Beverley came into the league back in 2010, he’s not only been one of the greatest shutdown defenders, but also one of the best agitators the game has known.
First, his defensive attributes: Beverley is coming off one of his best defensive seasons in years as he posted 4.1 RPG, 1.2 SPG, 0.9 BPG, and had 9.2 PPG. Yes, Beverley is getting older, as he is now 34, but he is still very efficient on the defensive side of the ball as we saw in Minnesota last season. Plus, he’ll help prevent the opposing offenses from scoring so many turnover points, which crippled the Lakers last season.
I have no doubt that Patrick Beverley will make this Lakers team have a far more imposing perimeter defense, while he can also provide defensive coverage in the interior when AD gets hurt (it’s no longer a question of “if” any longer).
Who knows, maybe this move could even propel the Lakers defense back into being a middle-of-the-pack defense, though Russell Westbrook’s constant turnovers and AD’s constant injuries may hamper those expectations.
Nevertheless, Patrick Beverley second greatest quality, his agitation skills, should be able to mitigate Westbrook and Davis’ defensive liabilities somewhat.
As far as I’m aware, there’s nobody in the NBA (aside from Draymond Green) that can annoy opposing players to the level that Beverley can. Just ask Chris Paul and his new teammate Russell Westbrook. He just has a knack of annoying the ever-living heck out of opposing players, which often gets them off their game and distracted. Beverley’s annoying antics is truly a forgotten art of defensive basketball.
Plus, his antics also have an offensive upside as the former Timberwolves guard was able to draw 144 fouls last season.
Like I said, this move will be a huge benefit to the Lakers as Beverley will help to reverse the nosedive this Lakers defense took last season. The only question that still remains for Rob Pelinka and owner Jeanie Buss is: how soon are they going to move Russell Westbrook out of LA now? There is no way Beverley and Westbrook will be able to share a court together without getting into at least three fights per game. Or can they?
I guess we’ll find out come the Lakers opening night.
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