After being introduced as a Los Angeles Laker, NBA veteran Patrick Beverley was not shy about expressing how he sees himself compared to his teammates.
Despite being the fourth or fifth best player on the team, Bev is riding pretty high on confidence right now, going so far as to call out LeBron James (his new teammate) during a chat with the media.
PatBev was unveiled to the media in a press conference today, and it was a memorable one. When a journalist asked him if he was excited to play alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Beverley had a response only he’d have the guts to say, as he openly said they should be excited because Beverley led a team to the playoffs last season while they missed it.
Reporter: “You’ll be playing with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.”
Patrick Beverley: “They’re gonna be playing with me. I made the playoffs last year, they didn’t. It’s a difference.”
To be fair to Beverley, he did make the playoffs last season, which is more that can be said for anybody on the Lakers. Still, as a role player, Beverley is in no place to flex his role on the team.
On social media, the community responded exactly how you’d expect, with many analysts and experts coming out to bash Bev for the disrespect towards one of the game’s greatest players.
“This quote was asinine. And if I’m LeBron James and Anthony Davis, I’m feeling some kind of way. Now, ultimately they’ll have to laugh it off and not worry about it. This is ridiculous! Michael Jackson did not GET to sing with Tito, okay? Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen did not GET to play with BJ Armstrong, it’s the other way around. This is ridiculous. This is the epitome of not knowing your lane.”
For other fans, however, they couldn’t help but imagine what Kobe Bryant’s reaction would have been to Beverley’s bizarre and out-of-line statement.
How Would Kobe Bryant Have Reacted To Patrick Beverley’s Controversial Statement?
Needless to say, fans were a little split on what to make of the exercise. While some agree that Bryant would have made a point out of Bev, others argue that the whole thing is pointless and dumb.
Off the court, Bryant was a nice guy who always managed to keep his cool. On the court, though, he turned into a different animal. Often described as a killer and assassin, the ‘Black Mamba’ didn’t take it easy on anyone and was always one step ahead of the competition.
Had Patrick Beverley made the mistake of saying that line to Kobe, he would have been destroyed in practices for the rest of the season because that’s just the type of guy Bryant was.
He never backed down from a challenge. Kobe was always out to prove himself as the best and embraced a leadership role that led him to five NBA Championships in his career.
Regarding LeBron James, only time will tell how he takes Beverley’s joke, but it will be interesting to watch.
