Patrick Beverley and the LA Clippers have reportedly agreed to a three-year deal worth $40 million, and while some have said it’s an overpay, we disagree.
Late Sunday night or early Monday morning, depending on your location, the LA Clippers reportedly agreed to a deal to bring Patrick Beverley back to the team. Despite Beverley serving as the heart and soul of the team for the past few seasons, this news still came out of left field for a lot of Clippers fans.
Leading up to the beginning of free agency, all the signs were pointing to Beverley signing elsewhere. He was supposed to take meetings with as many as five teams, including his hometown Chicago Bulls, all of which were more point guard-needy than the Clippers. To be honest, I didn’t have anything more than a sliver of hope that he’d be returning.
Day one commenced without any news on Beverley — but other point guards were signing, and signing big. Ricky Rubio got three years and $51 million from the Phoenix Suns. Malcolm Brogdon got four years and $85 million from the Indiana Pacers. Terry Rozier got $60 million from the Charlotte Hornets.
Finally, the news came — three years, $40 million for Beverley. A fair price, all things considered, but never one that I would consider to be an overpay. He’s earned every dollar.
Beverley isn’t going to be the guy to go out and drop 40 points in Game 7, or hit the game-winning shot with the clock running down. But he’s a motivator, one hell of a teammate, and above all, one of the best defenders in basketball. You have to be willing to pay for that, and the Clippers were.
It’s also been made clear that Beverley and the Clippers have a strong, mutual respect — according to the LA Times‘ Andrew Greif, Beverley took a pay cut of around $9 or $10 million to come back and play for the team. That alone should have the Clippers feeling confident with their offer to keep Beverley in Los Angeles.
But if that’s not enough for you, consider the confidence that Beverley has in his Clippers. On Monday night, the guard appeared on SportsCenter to talk about his new deal and what it means for him. When he started talking about Kawhi Leonard, Beverley said that he’ll be happy for him no matter what he does. He followed that up by saying “it’s on” if he’s comes to the Clippers, but if not, Beverley said “it’s still on”.
That’s the thing you’ve got to love about Beverley. He doesn’t care who else is around him on his team. And while it’d be great if Leonard does end up choosing the Clippers, it won’t alter how hard Beverley plays if he doesn’t. He’s going to give everything he’s got, night in and night out, whether the Clippers are down by 31 or up by the same margin.
Beverley’s desire to win is something that you just can’t quantify — and that kind of thing is priceless. He’s earned the right to be here, and at the very least, he earned every penny of his $40 million. The LA Clippers wouldn’t be the same without him.