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Fox Sports 1 pundit Skip Bayless is not often on the side of flamboyant athletes, but he was on Wednesday morning’s iteration of his show Undisputed, when he chastised L.A. Clippers guard Patrick Beverley for his after-the-whistle play on Oklahoma City Thunder star Russell Westbrook.
“I know Patrick Beverley, I respect Patrick Beverley, but last night I was on Russell Westbrook’s side because what Patrick Beverley did last night was a dirty play and a cheap shot,” said Bayless. “He dived not for the basketball, but for Russell’s knees — and I did not like it.”
"Last night, I was on Russell Westbrook's side… What Patrick Beverley did last night was a dirty play and a cheap shot."@RealSkipBayless on the altercation between Westbrook and Beverley pic.twitter.com/4mz08FBgoz
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) October 31, 2018
Westbrook has had four surgeries in his bothersome right knee since coming into the league, a well-known fact to a defensive stopper of the Clippers guard’s caliber.
Bayless cited the Apr. 25, 2013 incident that forced Russell to miss the rest of the postseason with a slight tear to his meniscus after Beverley dove for a steal — saying he defended Beverley’s innocence back then. That incident is believed to have stirred the bad blood between the two guards.
The Fox Sports 1 personality argued that this time around it wasn’t a freak accident, but a well-calculated risk, which Beverley took full-knowingly after trading barbs with the OKC start with similar rockabye baby layup celebrations.
Beverley has a history for being a hard-nosed defender and one to get under other players’ skin. His latest antic might have pushed that bar over the top, as it looks that even one of his longest proponents is no longer willing to defend him in this situation.
The bad blood between the two guards was kept from escalating, even bringing police onto the court to separate both benches from brewing up an even bigger storm.