Patrick Beverley certainly wasted no time jumping on Chris Paul’s slander wagon after Phoenix lost to Dallas in Game 7. Pat Bev was bright and early on ESPN, throwing jab after jab after jab at longtime rival CP3. It feels like we hear the phrase “keep it real” way too often these days, but Beverley did just that. He didn’t hold back when it came to breaking Paul down.
As we know, Beverly is never at a loss for words, whether it’s on the court, on Twitter or on TV. Beverly joined ESPN Stand up with Mike Greenberg, Stephen A. Smith and JJ Reddick on Monday morning and gave his analysis of what we saw the night before. Pat Bev claims Paul should have been benched in clip because the Suns didn’t get anything from him.
It’s hard to argue against Beverly’s argument because Paul was passive throughout the game. He attempted eight shots in Game 7 and seven in Game 6. While not known as a dominant goalscorer, Paul is known for heating up and taking over when needed. We have seen this page Paul last year several times in the playoffs. It looked like Paul ran out of breath after the second game against the Mavs, turning 37 on the same day. May 6th came and went, taking Chris’ game with it.
Becoming a talking head is a perfect fit for Beverley now that his NBA career is over. He was just that throughout his time in the league. Although Beverley is known for intense defense and often picks up ball handlers all over the court, Pat was Bev’s most valuable asset his mouth. Blessed with the gift of the Gab, he is not afraid to let his voice ring in the ears of his opponents.
Mr. 94 Feet even claimed that nobody in the NBA sweats when facing Paul, leading to a game against the Suns. I’m not sure how true that is as Paul is well regarded in the league. About this time a year ago, Paul’s name entered the conversation of the greatest point guards of all time with names like Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas and Stephen Curry. A year later, on national television, he is ravaged by a guard who doesn’t even get an invitation to enter the Hall of Fame when he’s done playing.
We have to realize that this rivalry between Beverley and Paul goes back many years, even before the NBA. Beverley was a guest on Reddick’s podcast, The old man and the threeduring the regular season, and he explained how he thinks the beef started.
“You know Chris so people don’t get it. Me and Chris, what we’ve had since high school.” said Beverly. “A lot of people don’t get the backstory, but Chris and I definitely get the backstory. I was invited to a LeBron James camp, the big Nike LeBron James camp when we were in college… Chris Paul was there. i killed him Destroyed him… Then I see him in the NBA, so obviously that energy will go to the NBA.”
So this isn’t a grudge that’s built up over the last few years. Given all of this, it’s not surprising that Beverly pushed Paul behind in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals last postseason. Not that he was right, but I get it. Paul isn’t squeaky clean himself, and Beverly wants to make sure everyone understands that. CP3 had more than one incident where his athleticism was questioned. And they usually revolved around targeting opposing players Under The waistline.
Pat even went over one of Paul’s business cards while he was ranting, downplaying CP3’s defensive ability. Paul is a nine-time all-defensive selection. So who can tell if this is just the rivalry talking or if Pat Bev actually believes it? Beverlys has had his own defensive skills in the past, most notably from Russell Westbrook a couple of years ago as he said Beverly fools people and doesn’t actually defend anyone. While Beverley was undoubtedly entertaining in what he said, I’m not so sure about the last part. But after Paul’s recent five-game stretch, it will be hard to convince Beverley otherwise.
