Patrick Beverley has been in hot water over the last 24 hours after reports surfaced claiming that the LA Clippers guard allegedly spoke in a disrespectful manner towards NBPA executive director Michele Roberts during Wednesday night's emotional meeting among players.
The report, coming from Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes, says Beverley repeated interrupted Roberts as she tried to address the financial ramifications of not playing the season. At one point, Beverley reportedly responded with, ‘No, I pay your salary,' when Michele Roberts asked if she could continue speaking.
“We had a very interesting conversation,” Beverley said. “The PA is like a family. I'm pretty sure with everyone here, all the cameras pointed to me, we're all a family. We don’t always agree with your family members and that’s okay. You communicate about it and you try to make it better. Whatever the dialogue was, or whatever you think it is, we made things better yesterday meeting with the owners and that's the most important thing.”
Patrick Beverley to @AndrewGreif on the reported exchange he had with NBPA executive director Michele Roberts. #Clippers pic.twitter.com/xGcbDxRRn0
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) August 28, 2020
Patrick Beverley didn't flat out deny the exchange and what was said, instead leaving it open for interpretation. At least four other NBA players have come out and denied Beverley ever said those things, including two non-Clippers.
From what I've seen so far, that's now four players (two non-Clippers) who have come out and called the report on what Patrick Beverley said false. pic.twitter.com/TffKad7UeJ
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) August 28, 2020
The Clippers, along with the Los Angeles Lakers, were reportedly ready to cancel the season and voted as such in the initial meeting Wednesday night. By Thursday morning, Lou Williams told NBPA President Chris Paul that his team was in, and the rest is history.
“I think collectively as a team, we just wanted to stay united with every other team here in the bubble, and of course the dialogue that we had was between players, players only, but whatever dialogue that was, it came out to be positive.
“Anything with communication, good communication, bad communication, emotional communication, any type of communication leads to answers, and we've been fortunate to have a good PA. We've been fortunate to have a great NBA foundation that we were able to take care of our families, and communication was good and it led to some action, and that's the most important thing.”
Head coach Doc Rivers spoke at length about the meeting, and said that emotions were high throughout the night.
At one point, Chris Paul even urged Rivers to speak to the players, and Rivers expressed that he thought players should play, but also make it their job to help in society if they wanted to.
“He's a blessing, especially him being from Chicago, so I kind of understand his lingo more than kind of anybody here,” Patrick Beverley said of Rivers. “But Doc, he's helped us, not only as a coach, but he's helped us kind of steer things in the right direction that we need to steer to, and he has knowledge. He's been around. He has a lot of connections. He has a lot of access to doors that me or anybody else might not have access to. He's able to put out in words that me as an athlete that I might not be able to put out. He's able to put those words out and deliver a message to not only get through to the African-American, that gets through to everybody.
“F*** that, not even as a coach, to even have a person like that, to even have a person like that that's in your corner, that's riding for you, to put the ball in your hands, to even have a person like that it's a great deal of respect, and he's from the crib, too, so it's respected and it's all love there, you know.”
The plan is for the Clippers to practice on Friday and again on Saturday before taking the floor Sunday for Game 6 against the Dallas Mavericks.
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