Patrick Beverley Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Notes: Davis, Trade Market, LeBron, Bryant, Christie

December 21st, 2022 at 6:24pm CST by Arthur Hill

The foot injury that Anthony Davis suffered last week has decreased the chances that the Lakers will gamble on a major trade, multiple sources tell Jovan Buha of The Athletic. He adds that the only exception would be if the team can acquire a young star that it believes can succeed alongside Davis over the next few years.

Even before the Davis injury, the Lakers’ front office wasn’t confident that there was a trade available that would turn the team into contenders, Buha states. He suggests the most likely current scenario is a deal that would include some combination of Patrick Beverley, Kendrick Nunn and a protected first-rounder in either 2027 or 2029 in exchange for a 3-and-D wing or a combo forward.

Along with the players who have already been linked to the Lakers in trade talks, Buha’s sources point to the Suns‘ Jae Crowder, the Rockets‘ Eric Gordon, the Pistons‘ Alec Burks, the Hornets‘ Terry Rozier, P.J. Washington and Kelly Oubre Jr. and the Spurs‘ Josh Richardson and Jakob Poeltl as players to watch.

There’s more on the Lakers, all from Buha:

LeBron James has posted four straight 30-point games, but his playing time is starting to become a concern. He’s averaged 39.2 minutes over the past five games, and the Lakers need to be careful that they don’t rely too heavily on him. Buha notes that James, who will turn 38 next week, ranks sixth in minutes per game among players with at least 50 total games over the past two seasons.
The loss of Davis has been eased somewhat by the emergence of Thomas Bryant. Buha states that Bryant was considered “almost unplayable” before Davis got hurt, but he’s averaging 17.7 points and 7.0 rebounds in the last three games while shooting 61.1% from the field and 55.6% from three-point range. The 25-year-old center joined the Lakers during the offseason on a veteran’s minimum contract and will be a free agent again next summer.
Rookie shooting guard Max Christie recently moved into the rotation and may be playing well enough to stay there. The second-round pick provides a much-needed 3-and-D option for coach Darvin Ham, and he’s one of the best rebounders among the team’s guards.
The starting backcourt of Beverley and Dennis Schroder hasn’t performed well, and Buha wonders why Ham keeps playing them together. The Lakers are minus-50 in 161 minutes when they’re on the court at the same time, and their skills seem to be redundant.

Pacific Notes: Sabonis, Kings, Suns, Booker, Beverley

December 20th, 2022 at 9:24am CST by Luke Adams

Before Kings center Domantas Sabonis racked up 28 points, 23 rebounds, and seven assists in Sunday’s loss to Charlotte, head coach Mike Brown said there’s “no question” that the big man should be an All-Star this season, according to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Sunday’s performance increased Sabonis’ season-long averages to 18.0 PPG, 12.0 RPG, and 6.4 APG. He’s also shooting a career-best 62.7% from the floor.

“If you don’t vote for him to be an All-Star, in my opinion, you don’t know basketball because what he’s doing, it’s almost on a historic level, and I’m not just talking about his ability to score or his ability to pass,” Brown said.

As impressive as Sabonis has been, the Kings are still seeking a reliable backup at the center position. The team began the season with Richaun Holmes playing that role, then turned to Chimezie Metu. On Sunday, two-way player Neemias Queta got a look, playing seven minutes in just his second appearance of the season. Brown said on Sunday that Holmes and Queta will get more opportunities, per Anderson, and that he expects to continue experimenting until he finds a reliable option in that spot.

“I can’t run Domas 40 minutes every night,” Brown said, according to Chris Biderman of The Sacramento Bee. “So I need to find a guy in that spot who’s going to defend, run the floor, spell Domas for six, eight minutes a half, and play as hard as he as can while following the game plan. Not fouling, boxing out, doing all the little things that need to keep that group solid for those six to eight minutes. We’ve found it in spurts. But I want to get to a point where it can be a little bit more consistent, so I’m going to keep searching until I feel like that person is there.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Although Suns owner Robert Sarver was suspended and fined by the NBA and is now planning to sell the team, a number of current and former Suns employees are still wondering whether other executives who contributed to creating a toxic workplace will face any punishment, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPN. CEO Jason Rowley is among those accused of mistreating staffers. As Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports tweets, the club put out a statement claiming that there are “factual inaccuracies” in Holmes’ report and that the franchise’s leaders have taken accountability for the allegations found to have merit.
Suns head coach Monty Williams blamed himself for the groin injury that sidelined Devin Booker on Monday. “Let’s be straight, I played him way too many minutes,” Williams said (Twitter link via Bourguet). “I can’t look at anybody else when I put players in harm’s way.”
Suns point guard Chris Paul brushed off a taunt from Lakers guard Patrick Beverley on Monday, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Beverley made a “too small” gesture when he converted an and-one against CP3 that cut L.A.’s deficit from 26 points to 23. “You can’t pay attention to that stuff,” Paul said. “That ain’t new. He ain’t come up with it. But just play basketball, man.” Beverley was suspended three games for shoving Deandre Ayton the last time the two teams faced one another.

Lakers’ James, Suns’ Booker Out For Monday’s Matchup

December 19th, 2022 at 4:02pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers star LeBron James has been ruled out for Monday’s contest in Phoenix due to left ankle soreness, tweets Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group.

Guard Austin Reaves will also be sidelined with a right ankle sprain, while fellow guard Patrick Beverley is questionable with right calf soreness.

It will be James’ eighth missed game thus far in 2022/23, and the timing isn’t great since Anthony Davis is reportedly out for at least a month after injuring his right foot in Friday’s win over Denver. However, it’s the second game of a back-to-back — the Lakers defeated the Wizards on Sunday night — so the team is likely being cautious with its star forward, who will turn 38 on December 30.

Losing Reaves is a big blow as well. His counting stats are fairly modest — he’s averaging 10.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG and 2.1 APG through 29 games (29.5 MPG) — but his efficiency is elite: his shooting slash line is .521/.391/.915, including a .680 true shooting percentage. It will be the 24-year-old’s first missed game of 2022/23.

The Suns will also be without their best player, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Shooting guard Devin Booker, who was previously listed as questionable with groin soreness, has been downgraded to out for tonight’s game against the Lakers.

Booker scored a season-high 58 points in Saturday’s victory over New Orleans, but he’d been dealing with left hamstring tightness early last week, which caused him to miss a couple games. It’s unclear if the two injuries are related or how long the 26-year-old might be sidelined, but the fact that he was initially deemed questionable seems to indicate that he should be back in action fairly soon.

Lakers Notes: Davis Injury, LeBron, Westbrook

December 19th, 2022 at 10:00am CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers haven’t issued an official statement on the status of Anthony Davis, but a weekend report indicating he will miss at least a month with an injured right foot could alter the course of their season and their approach to the trade deadline, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

Specialists were still evaluating Davis as of Sunday night, and coach Darvin Ham suggested the team may release more information on the injury on Monday. L.A. is 12th in the West at 13-16 and is entering a tough part of the schedule with seven of its next eight games on the road.

Davis’ injury and how it might affect management’s approach to upgrading the roster were among the topics at Sunday’s post-game press conference.

“Not a question for me,” LeBron James said. “I have no idea. When I’m playing, I show up, prepare, go to work and get my guys ready to go win a basketball game. I play the game, I’m not in the front office, so we’ll see. But I’m focused on the game and us trying to win basketball games, especially when I’m out on the floor.”

As James left the media session, Buha adds, he told a reporter, “Go ask (general manager) Rob (Pelinka) those questions.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

The Lakers are already facing inflated prices on the trade market as rival teams understand they’re under pressure to make a deal, reports Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. As an example, he states that the Jazz asked L.A. for a first-round pick in exchange for Bojan Bogdanovic before the season began, but ultimately traded him to Detroit without getting a first-rounder in return. Pincus notes that the Lakers were “conflicted internally” about risking their future on any trade that didn’t make them an obvious contender, even before the Davis injury. If Davis is lost for an extended stretch, Pincus suggests L.A. might focus on smaller moves such as adding a free agent center (maybe DeMarcus Cousins) and seeing what it can get for Patrick Beverley, Kendrick Nunn and second-round picks.
James’ situation is unprecedented for a player of his age and talent, per Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated. Although he’s still performing at an all-NBA level as he nears his 38th birthday, James faces the prospect of another non-playoff season.
While Davis is sidelined, James will likely see some time at center, which was effective last season, according to Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. There will also be an increased focus on James’ pairing with Russell Westbrook, as Goon notes that with Westbrook’s move to a reserve role they have shared the court for just 17.2 minutes per game this season.

Timberwolves Notes: Reid, Beverley, Ryan, Anderson

December 17th, 2022 at 9:45am CST by Luke Adams

With Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert unavailable on Friday night, Timberwolves center Naz Reid got his first start of the season in Oklahoma City and delivered in a big way. The big man’s 28 points were easily a season high, and he also chipped in nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals. The Wolves outscored the Thunder by 21 points with Reid on the floor in a game they won by just two points.

The performance was a reminder of why the Wolves have been trying to lock up Reid to a contract extension for several months, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter links), who says the 23-year-old’s best play might be to wait for unrestricted free agency.

As we noted when news of Reid’s extension negotiations with the team first broke, Minnesota could offer up to about $58MM over four years, and I’m skeptical he’ll do better than that as a free agent. But perhaps it makes sense for him to see what else is available on the open market, especially if the Wolves’ offers have been modest.

Although Reid is in a contract year, Wolfson doesn’t expect Minnesota to seriously consider trading him before the February deadline, arguing that it would be hard to get fair value for him and noting that the Wolves still have “lofty” goals for this season that Reid can help them achieve (Twitter links).

Here are a few more Timberwolves notes:

Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic discusses a bevy of Timberwolves-related topics in his latest mailbag, addressing the team’s apparent leadership void, D’Angelo Russell‘s trade value, and Anthony Edwards‘ development, among many other topics. Krawczynski also responds to the recent report that said Patrick Beverley would welcome a return to Minnesota if he’s traded and then bought out, suggesting a reunion this season looks like a “long shot.”
New Timberwolves sharpshooter Matt Ryan, who signed a two-way contract with the team last Thursday, said earlier this week that everyone in Minnesota has made him feel welcome and that he’s hoping to get more of an opportunity to play than he did with the Lakers. “I thought that I was one of the better shooters on the (Lakers), but the opportunity wasn’t there for whatever reasons,” Ryan said, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. “Now coming here, from the feedback I’ve gotten, their three-point shooting is struggling and it’s just, ‘Be ready.'”
Britt Robson of MinnPost.com takes a look at the “near-comprehensive competence” of forward Kyle Anderson and explores what he has brought to the Timberwolves. Minnesota used most of its mid-level exception to bring in Anderson over the summer.

Fischer’s Latest: Poeltl, Vucevic, Beverley, Bey, More

December 14th, 2022 at 11:22pm CST by Rory Maher

Spurs center Jakob Poeltl will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in 2023, and he’s looking forward to having more say in his future.

“I’ve never been in this situation where unrestricted free agency is coming up. It’s a cool situation for sure, because in the NBA, a lot of times you are — I don’t want to say stuck — but it feels like you’re a little bit of a pawn. They can just trade you around wherever they want,” Poeltl told Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. “It’s not the mentality you should have while you’re playing, but it’s the reality of it. Your contract can get passed around, more or less, whenever and however they want. So it’s nice to be in this situation where you can kind of decide your own fate and evaluate what’s going to be the best situation for me.”

Assuming Poeltl remains a Spur past the trade deadline, which certainly is not a given, Fischer writes re-signing with San Antonio “appears to be an option he will strongly consider.” Fischer polled league executives to gauge how much the 27-year-old might fetch on the open market, and the range was between $15-25MM annually.

The Raptors continue to be listed as a potential trade suitor for their former player, sources tell Fischer.

Here are some more trade rumors from Fischer:

The Bulls are not currently discussing a contract extension with center Nikola Vucevic, sources tell Fischer. He adds that Chicago never seriously considered renegotiating his deal. According to Fischer, the Bulls have been telling rival teams inquiring about trades that “they believe they can make the playoffs when healthy.” However, the latest report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski might damper that prospect.
The first-round pick the Lakers offered the Pistons for Bojan Bogdanovic was “heavily protected,” according to Fischer, who hears from sources that Patrick Beverley hopes to rejoin the Timberwolves if he’s dealt to a rebuilding club like Detroit and reaches a buyout agreement. Beverley and Kendrick Nunn were included in L.A.’s offer for salary-matching purposes.
Multiple rival teams tell Fischer that the Pistons are seeking an unprotected first-rounder for forward Saddiq Bey. The 23-year-old still has one additional year left on his rookie scale contract after being selected with the No. 19 pick of the 2020 draft. He’s having a down season from three-point range, but is getting to the free throw line at a career-best clip.
The Knicks were “eager” to make a deal before December 9 so they could have potentially aggregated incoming salaries again before the February 9 deadline, sources tell Fischer. One of their early targets was Rockets guard Eric Gordon, per Fischer. Houston continues to seek a future first-round pick for the 33-year-old, as Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle reported earlier on Wednesday.
Sources tell Fischer that the Pacers are looking for an upgrade at power forward to join their young core, and he believes Indiana could be a potential destination for Hawks big man John Collins. Fischer hears from sources that the Pacers are giving the impression that they’re open to extending Myles Turner, though there hadn’t been any recent talks on that front prior to Turner switching agents. However, Fischer says Turner “would certainly be amenable” to continuing his career in Indiana.

Trade Rumors: Bogdanovic, Fournier, Reddish, Beverley, Nunn

December 13th, 2022 at 2:28pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat, Mavericks, and Hawks are among the many teams that have expressed trade interest in Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. However, Scotto says Detroit has been “unwilling to engage” in discussions involving Bogdanovic.

According to Scotto, rival executives with interest in the 33-year-old forward are hoping that the Pistons’ stance will change before the February 9 trade deadline, especially now that franchise cornerstone Cade Cunningham will miss the rest of the season due to shin surgery.

Even if the Pistons eventually throw in the towel on this season though, there’s no guarantee they’ll make Bogdanovic available. James L. Edwards III of The Athletic observed earlier today that Detroit signed Bogdanovic to an extension beyond 2022/23 with an eye toward keeping him around as the team attempts to contend for the postseason, not to improve his trade value.

With Bogdanovic now locked up through the 2024/25 season (the final year of his deal has only a small partial guarantee), the Pistons would have opportunities to trade him down the road if they don’t do so at the 2023 deadline.

Here are a few more trade-related rumors from around the NBA:

Following up on Shams Charania’s report about the Knicks and Lakers discussing Cam Reddish and Evan Fournier, Scotto says the Knicks initially engaged the Lakers to see if they’d have any interest in taking on Fournier in exchange for Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn.
Even though the Lakers like Reddish and have inquired on him multiple times within the past year, it’s unlikely that attaching him to Fournier would be enough to move the needle for L.A. in a Beverley/Nunn swap, Scotto writes. The Lakers can currently create approximately $30MM in cap room next summer, and Fournier’s contract (which includes an $18.9MM cap hit for 2023/24) would significantly compromise their flexibility.
Although several teams have some level of interest in Reddish, he’s viewed as more of a flier than a hugely valuable trade chip, according to Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. Given that Reddish will be a free agent in 2023 and is currently out of the Knicks‘ rotation, that doesn’t come as a surprise.
In case you missed it, we rounded up several trade rumors on Monday and passed along a few Pistons-centric rumors earlier today.

Health Updates: Lakers, Horford, Matthews, Payton

December 7th, 2022 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers will be shorthanded on Wednesday night in Toronto, according to Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group, who tweets that star forwards Anthony Davis and LeBron James have both been ruled out by the team.

Davis is still battling the non-COVID illness that forced him to leave Tuesday’s contest in Cleveland early, while James is getting the second night of a back-to-back set off due to left ankle soreness. The Lakers have also listed guard Patrick Beverley as doubtful to play due to right knee soreness.

Here are a few more health-related updates from around the NBA:

Celtics big man Al Horford has been ruled out for Wednesday’s game vs. Phoenix after entering the NBA’s health and safety protocols, the team announced today (via Twitter). If Horford has tested positive for COVID-19, it will likely be at least a few days before he’s cleared to return, so his availability for the rest of Boston’s West Coast trip is up in the air.
Bucks wing Wesley Matthews has also been placed in the health and safety protocols and will be unavailable for Wednesday’s contest vs. Sacramento, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Like Horford, Matthews could miss more games beyond tonight’s.
Trail Blazers guard Gary Payton II is inching closer to his season debut following offseason abdominal surgery. Teammate Damian Lillard told reporters on Wednesday that Payton practiced in full today, tweets Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.

Lakers Considering Dealing Beverley, Nunn, Draft Picks

December 1st, 2022 at 11:19pm CST by Rory Maher

The Lakers are “leaning toward” trading “some combination of Patrick Beverley, Kendrick Nunn and picks (one first-round and/or multiple second-round picks) for role players” in order to upgrade the rotation, multiple team sources tell Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

Going that route would still give the Lakers the flexibility to move Russell Westbrook and another first-rounder closer to the deadline, Buha writes.

The Lakers are still contemplating offering a Westbrook and pick(s) package to land a “star or multi-player haul,” according to Buha, but that option is considered less likely than a smaller deal involving Beverley and/or Nunn plus picks.

Buha reported earlier this week that the Lakers are looking to upgrade their perimeter shooting and size. Any deal(s) would likely occur after December 15, when most free agents signed in the offseason become trade-eligible.

Considering the Lakers have an excess of small guards on their roster and Beverley and Nunn are the only players aside from Lonnie Walker who aren’t on minimum- or maximum-salary contracts, it’s only natural that they might try to use them as trade chips. That’s especially true since both have struggled mightily in 2022/23 — Beverley is averaging just 4.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 2.7 APG and 0.9 SPG on .268/.234/.824 shooting in 15 games (27.1 MPG), while Nunn is averaging 5.8 PPG, 1.4 RPG and 1.3 APG on .364/.291/.889 shooting in 18 games (13.9 MPG).

It’s a little shocking just how poorly Beverley has shot the ball early on, since he’s a career 37.5% three-point shooter over 541 regular season games — his 23.4% mark is almost certain to rise with time. Similarly, Nunn shot 36.4% from deep in his first two seasons with Miami prior to missing all of last season with a knee injury, but he hasn’t looked right since he returned in 2022/23.

ESPN’s Dave McMenamin suggested on Monday that the Lakers might dangle the expiring contracts of Beverley ($13MM) and Nunn ($5.25MM). Combining their salaries would allow the Lakers to take on up to $22.9MM in salary, since they’re in the tax.

Patrick Beverley Suspended For Three Games

November 24th, 2022 at 1:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The NBA has suspended Lakers point guard Patrick Beverley for three games without pay, the league announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

As we detailed on Wednesday, Beverley shoved Suns center Deandre Ayton in the back while the Phoenix center was standing over Lakers guard Austin Reaves during the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s 115-105 Suns victory. This led to a brief on-court fracas between the two clubs. Beverley was instantly ejected, while Ayton was assessed with a technical foul.

According to the NBA’s announcement, the suspension was “based in part on Beverley’s history of unsportsmanlike acts.”

Back when he was a member of the Clippers, Beverley shoved Suns point guard Chris Paul in the back during a stoppage in play in Game 6 of the 2021 Western Conference Finals. He received a one-game suspension for that incident.

Beverley’s teammates and head coach Darvin Ham defended him after Tuesday’s game and gave him credit for standing up for a teammate, but there was a sense that a suspension could be in play. Ham told reporters that Beverley would likely “go through some type of consequence” for his actions, while the veteran guard said he was prepared to “take my lumps however they come.”

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the three-game suspension will cost Beverley $89,655 per game (1/145th of his $13MM salary), for a total of $268,966. The Lakers will receive half that amount (a total of $134,483) as a tax variance credit, Marks notes, saving them a little money on their end-of-season bill.

Beverley has struggled offensively during his first season as a Laker. The 34-year-old is averaging 4.1 PPG on .266/.238./824 shooting splits.