On 21st February, the Chicago Bulls announced they had signed guard Patrick Beverley per the team’s policy. However, they did not disclose the terms of the contract.
The signing of Beverley comes at a time when the Bulls are going through a very hard time on the court. Six consecutive losses in the NBA are not for a team of Bulls’ resources and roster.
By bringing on board free agent, Patrick Beverley, they expect him to bring more power and ferocity to the locker room and court. His experience will help mentor and bring leadership to the younger guards like Ayo Dosunmu.
Beverley was born and raised in Chicago. He played high school basketball for John Marshall Metropolitan high school.
.@patbev21 is coming home to Chicago, where he averaged 37.3 points a game at Marshall High School
Here's a clip of Dan Roan's piece on Beverley, long before he knew he'd play for the #Bulls one day
Watch more: https://t.co/LkZKTIsp0I pic.twitter.com/NsgIF3AA4V
— GNSportsTV (@GNSportsTV) February 21, 2023
Beverley Has Had an Excellent Performance in His 10-Year NBA Career
Patrick Beverley is a 10-year veteran in the NBA. He made his NBA debut with the Houston Rockets in 2013. Beverley was traded to the Lakers by the Minnesota Timberwolves mid last year before moving to Chicago about a week ago.
In 45 games with the Lakers earlier this season, Beverley averaged 6.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 three-pointers, 0.9 steals and 0.6 blocks in 26.9 minutes per contest while shooting 40.2 percent from the field.
Beverley played college basketball for the Arkansas Razorbacks before spending three and a half seasons overseas in Russia, Ukraine, and Greece. He has spent a considerable amount of his time in the NBA with the Houston Rockets (2013-2017) and the Clippers (2017-2021). He has a total of 571 games in the NBA, averaging 8.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 27.4 minutes.
In addition, Beverley has earned spots on three All-NBA Defensive Teams, including the first squad in 2016–17. He also went into the records by becoming the first player ever to receive the NBA Hustle Award in the same season.
Patrick Beverley & the Chicago Bulls play against the Los Angeles Lakers TWICE before the end of the 2022-23 season.
Beverley’s main objective? “Knock them out of the playoffs.” 😳💯
Beverly wants payback over his former team! Will they get knocked out? 🤔 (@PatBevPod ,… pic.twitter.com/PzEfw2QMx3
— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) February 22, 2023
Beverley Can Help Strengthen Bulls
The Chicago Bulls’ signing of Beverley will help strengthen and bring structure and intensity to the team. Since Ball’s injury, the Chicago Bulls have relied on Ayo Dosunmu, a second-year guard, to be the starter.
He has been very instrumental in the team’s roster, only that he hasn’t been able to take the place of Lonzo Ball in its entirety. The Chicago Bulls lacks a conventional point guard. They have also been shooting the Ball awfully from outside.
The team needs an urgent fix to this weakness, and Beverley can assist because he is a reliable facilitator and has shot 39.6% from beyond the arc since December.
Currently, Chicago has 21 games remaining in the season. The Bulls have lost six of their last eight games. What’s even more worrying is that the losses occurred consecutively. They are currently in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, with very little hopes of appearing in the playoffs.
With this poor performance, Patrick Beverley is expected to pump life back into the Bulls and lift the team to the playoffs.
“I’m shooting 40% over the last couple of months. Actually, playing some of my best basketball. Put up the numbers, my numbers right now are better than my numbers in Minnesota last season.” Patrick said.
Even though Beverley is no longer an all-defensive player, he is hardworking and can defend well.
Pat Bev tweeted this in 2012 before entering the league 🔮
The hometown kid returns home 👏 pic.twitter.com/w8nCVqybCh
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 20, 2023
Patrick Is Excited To Join the Bulls
Patrick is excited to play for the Chicago Bulls and unite with players like Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. In his interview on vacation in Paris, he told journalists that he was prepared to give his all to the team and help them restore their glory in the NBA.
“If you think I went hard for other teams, just imagine how I’m going to go hard for this one.”
He also expressed his love for the team and said he liked how the Bulls’ coach Billy Donovan has been organizing his players.
“I like Donovan’s structure, I like how he goes about things, so I couldn’t say no to that. Obviously, it’s always good to play with a lot of great talent in Golden State, but it’s a lot of guards over there. So, I figured I could make a playoff push with the Bulls right now and kinda puff ’em up a little bit.”
Before signing with the Bulls, he was deciding between the Golden State Warriors and the Bulls. However, the Warriors were waiting until after the all-star weekend to decide, which made him choose the Bulls, who were ready to embrace him.
Since Ball has not been playing this season due to an injured knee and is expected to sit the whole season, signing Beverley could be what the Bulls need for the extra push and to fill in for Ball.
I ❤️ PAT BEV
Need one 🤣 pic.twitter.com/YhGZEr5FTj
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 25, 2023
Credits on Featured Image: Pkantz, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
