The knock on the LA Clippers to start the season was that the team needed a point guard. Despite Patrick Beverley having made First Team All-Defense last season, many felt that a true playmaker was something the team absolutely had to get in order to advance further.
The team didn’t go out and get another playmaker (yet) but instead gave more responsibility to their start players to make plays. So far it’s working and the Clippers are winning all while Beverley gets to continue to start and be an excellent defender.
Last night versus the Utah Jazz, Patrick Beverley again proved why he’s First Team All-Defense.
If you didn’t watch the game and only look briefly at the box score, you might think “What did he even do?” One block and zero steals don’t really jump out, especially when you look at Utah and see Donovan Mitchell scored 35 points and Mike Conley had 16. It might be why so many casual fans believe Russell Westbrook when he says “Pat Bev trick y’all“.
Dig a little deeper and it’s obvious why he’s First Team though.
Don’t believe me? Donovan Mitchell himself confirmed just how tough Pat Bev is on defense.
See? Pat Bev is a First Team member for a reason.
Looking deeper into last night’s stats, it’s easy to see just how much Beverley bothered Utah’s two star guards.
This season, Conley has scored 0 points when Beverley was the primary defender, going 0-2 from the field. That matchup hasn’t been as long as his matchup against Mitchell, however.
Mitchell has scored 12 points against Beverley but did so on a high volume of shots. He has made just four of his 14 shots from the field, good enough for 28.6% shooting. From deep, he is just one of eight. Bev obviously does bother Mitchell and should these two teams meet in the playoffs, we have to assume Beverley would draw this assignment to start.
The Clippers might not need to make any moves given how they’re playing, especially with Beverley fitting into the starting unit so well. His defense has proven invaluable and will be necessary for the postseason.