Patrick Beverley wasn't an NBA superstar, but he sure made a name for himself during his 12 years in the league. Beverley's career in the best basketball league in the world was far from normal. After being deemed ineligible to play college ball during his junior season after cheating in the classroom, Beverley went to hone his basketball skills overseas in 2008 in an effort to eventually make the jump to the NBA.
Beverley played overseas ball for teams including Dnipro (Ukraine), Olympiacos (Greece), and Spartak St. Petersburg (Russia) until 2012. He was drafted in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft along the way, but he wasn't able to make it back stateside until the Houston Rockets gave him a chance in 2013.
Now, Beverley is headed back across the pond. He is leaving the NBA for a chance with an Israeli team called Hapoel Tel Aviv BC. It is probably safe to assume the point guard's NBA career is over, but there were certainly a lot of memories made along the way. The pesky defensive minded player was known for antics and ability to get under his opponents skin. He was an irritant that was never fun to play against, which made fans of his team/his teammates love him, and his opponents hate him. Check out the gallery to see the five craziest moments of Patrick Beverley's career.
5. Shows camera to referee
Our fifth-place moment for the craziest parts of Patrick Beverley's career wasn't quite as impactful as the rest of the moments on this list. Still, it was a moment that went extremely viral and will be remembered for a long time. Although Beverley often played the role of tough guy for his teams, he also had a humorous side to him.
The guard was known for trolling from time to time, and that was illustrated during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers. In 2023, the Lakers were playing the Boston Celtics, and LeBron James had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation. The score was tied, 105-105, and James drove to the hoop as time expired. He missed the would-be game-winner, but he and his Lakers teammates thought he was fouled.
The referees decided on a no-call, and the game went to overtime, but not before Beverly had something to say about it. Beverley stole a camera from a courtside cameraperson and brought it up to a referee, signaling that the referee needs to check the footage. Although it was a humorous moment for NBA fans, it led to a technical foul call, which helped the Celtics in ultimately winning the game.
4. Feud with Russell Westbrook
During his time in the NBA, Patrick Beverley has feuded with tons of players. Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and LeBron James all come to mind as players Beverley butted heads with. His first feud ever was with Russell Westbrook.
Beverley spent his first year in the NBA with the Houston Rockets. He didn't play a lot of minutes, but the team would deploy him as a high-energy player off of the bench. He'd use his defensive prowess and his never-ending stamina to make life hard on opposing superstars.
Beverley was used in this manner in the 2013 NBA playoffs to try and slow down Westbrook. In Game 2 of the first round against the Thunder, Beverley went for a steal as the Thunder's point guard was calling for a timeout. Beverley collided with Westbrook while trying to make a play, and it led to Westbrook tearing his meniscus. Some fans viewed the play as Beverley giving maximum effort, but others saw it as a dirty play.
After the dust settled, the Rockets lost the series, but the injury forced Westbrook out for the rest of the postseason and led to the Thunder losing the following round. It also led to a career-long feud between the two.
Over the following years, we have seen multiple confrontations and incidents between the two where they made it clear they don't like each other. There was a play the following year that gave deja vu to the one in the 2013 playoffs, as Westbrook again took exception to Beverley going for a steal as he was calling a timeout. Years later, Beverley mocked Westbrook's rock the baby celebration, and not long ago, we saw the two exchange words after Westbrook missed a game-winner while playing for the Rockets.
Every time the two matched up, you knew tensions were going to be high. Beverley and Westbrook both played with effort, energy, and competitiveness, and you would come to expect a scuffle to break out at some point when the two played each other.
3. Throws ball at fans, twice
Patrick Beverley's last moment on the hardwood of an NBA court was also one of his craziest moments ever. Beverley's Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated in Game 6 of the 2024 NBA playoffs against the Indiana Pacers. Frustrations were clearly high, as Beverley was only able to score six points in 40 minutes, and it led to the Bucks season ending prematurely.
After being subbed out, moments before the end of the game, Beverley let his frustrations out in the wrong way. Beverley threw a basketball at a group of Pacers fans. When he got the ball back, he decided to throw it at them again.
Beverley only added insult to injury from there. In his post-game press conference, Beverley disrespected a female ESPN reporter when he refused to be interviewed by her because she didn't subscribe to his podcast. He then kicked her out of the interview circle. The ball throw, followed up by the post-game interview, led to Beverley receiving a four-game suspension that would have kicked in at the start of next season, if Beverley were to have received an NBA contract.
2. Feud with Chris Paul
Russell Westbrook wasn't the only legendary point guard that Beverley has a life-long feud with. Chris Paul is also on that list. The beef was at its apex during the 2021 Western Conference Finals.
Years prior, Beverley was involved in a trade for Paul that landed him on the Los Angeles Clippers. In the 2021 playoffs, Beverley was tasked with taking on Paul while the former Clipper was playing for the Phoenix Suns. The two butted heads all series, and Paul ended up having one of the best games of his career in the closeout game.
Paul scored 41 points and added eight assists to advance to the NBA Finals in a game where Beverley was the primary defender against him. It was a rare poor defensive performance by Beverley, and he lashed out by pushing Paul in the back when the Suns' guard hit a big three-point shot.
It was an unsportsmanlike and cowardly move by Beverley and it resulted in him being suspended for the start of the succeeding season. Beverley didn't move on, though. Instead, he spent the summer explaining how Chris Paul was a cone who can't defend. The comments and hatred towards Paul came off as petty, considering Paul had just torched him in the playoffs.
1. Play-in tournament celebration
The most famous moment of Patrick Beverley's career came after his Minnesota Timberwolves won their play-in tournament game in 2022, and therefore clinched a spot in the postseason. While the victory was worth celebrating, Beverley and his teammates went all out. Some would even say that they took their celebration a little overboard.
It looked like Beverley and his teammates were celebrating like they just won the NBA Finals, not a game that secured them the seventh-seed. Beverley was seen running all over the court while screaming and shouting. His celebration was highlighted by when he jumped onto the scorers table. The point guard even shed a tear during the process.
The celebration was short lived, as Minnesota ended up losing in the first round. However, the memes from the memorable incident will last forever.
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