As shocking as it may sound, the Los Angeles Lakers missed not only the playoffs but also the play-in tournament last season. For a team that had LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook on the roster, it was a really underwhelming performance.
Now ahead of the 2022-23 NBA season, the Lakers are keen on returning to their best form and hopefully winning the NBA title. But the organization wouldn’t reach its goal without making some serious changes to the roster.
For what it’s worth, the Lakers seem to have learned a few lessons from their last season’s mistakes. They have replaced their supporting cast with young players instead of veterans, which proved to be lethal during the final stretches of several games.
On top of that, the Lakers have traded for veteran guard Patrick Beverley to improve their defense. Apart from playing elite defense, Pat Bev can also knock down your occasional three-pointer with good enough accuracy. So his addition to the roster certainly made it to the headlines.
Patrick Beverley Opens Up After His First Practice With The Lakers
Throughout his career, Pat Bev has shown a style of basketball that has always been loved by his fans but hated by his opponents. Considering his outspoken nature, many expect it to cause problems for the Lakers in the 2022-23 NBA season.
For example, he made some comments about LeBron James and Anthony Davis which quickly caught the attention of the fans. Despite all that, after his first practice with the L.A. Lakers, Pat Bev explained that he has no intention of changing the culture of the team.
Pat Bev showed up ready for day 1️⃣
(via @Lakers)pic.twitter.com/9WnhwgVdHC
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) September 13, 2022
“I’m all about winning. But I’m not here trying to change the culture. I’m just trying to implement what I feel like has worked over the past year. My thing has always been camaraderie, team, team, team. And you do that and you play hard, you just let the dominoes fall wherever they fall from there.”
Beverley made it extremely clear that while he wants to win with the Lakers, he has no plans to change the culture of the Lakers.
After all, if he tries to do that, it could land him in a lot of trouble with the fans. To be honest, the Lakers were in dire need of players like Pat Bev, who could take on a leadership role for the franchise. Now, the only question left is, will the addition of Beverley be enough for the Lakers to win the title? We will find out soon.
