Patrick Beverley wanted to play for the Perth Wildcats. They were not interested. That just about sums up where his basketball career is right now, and Los Angeles Lakers fans can’t help but smirk.
According to Hoops Rumors’ Luke Adams, Beverley showed interest in joining the Australian NBL team, but Perth “didn’t meaningfully engage.” The Wildcats are still evaluating several former NBA players for their open import spot, but it is clear Beverley was never in the running, and honestly, that makes sense.
Perth’s lack of interest in Patrick Beverley says it all
At this point, he brings more baggage than benefit. For someone who once walked into the Lakers’ locker room claiming he was going to “change the culture,” this is a pretty brutal fall.
Los Angeles brought him in during the 2022 season to provide defensive energy, toughness, and leadership. What they got instead was a whole lot of talk and not much production.
In just 45 games with the Lakers, Beverley averaged 6.4 points per game while shooting just 40 percent from the field. That was enough for the team to move on quickly.
The Lakers wound up shipping him to the Chicago Bulls before the season was even over. Since then, it has just been a downhill slide.
He finished last NBA season with the Milwaukee Bucks, but not before melting down in spectacular fashion. In Game 6 of the Bucks’ first-round playoff loss to the Indiana Pacers, Beverley threw a basketball into the crowd, not once, but twice, hitting a fan in the face. He was suspended four games for the incident.
If that was not bad enough, then came the locker room moment that sealed it. Beverley kicked out an ESPN producer from his postgame interview just because she did not subscribe to his podcast. It was not just a bad look, it was a reputation breaker.
Patrick Beverly tells female reporter from ESPN that she cannot interview him since she doesn't subscribe to his podcast. pic.twitter.com/sRFHiZJaSK
— Alex Golden (@AlexGoldenNBA) May 3, 2024
Rather than stay in the league and face the suspension, Beverley signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv in the summer of 2024, returning to his overseas roots. Even with that fresh start, his name is already showing up on “do not call” lists, with Perth being a perfect example.
He has gone from playoff pest to basketball punchline. Lakers fans remember the energy, the big talk, and the supposed leadership. But mostly, they remember how fast it all came undone.
Now, they are watching from a distance, shaking their heads and even laughing at what can only be described as a total clown show. Lakers' fans have had some good laughs this offseason; this one has to be one of the best.