Patrick Beverley (US AP Photo/Brandon Deere, File)
The Los Angeles Lakers reached an agreement on Wednesday to acquire point guard Patrick Bever from the Utah Jazz, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. Benefit in exchange for Taron Horton-Tucker.
Beverley made a brief stint in Utah, where he arrived in early July as center Rudy Gobert ) as part of a blockbuster trade to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The 34-year-old Chicago native is about to spend a 2021-22 season with the Wolves, averaging 9.2 points, 4.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals. 58 appearances.
He had positive results on both ends of the floor, ranking 61st in FiveThirtyEight’s WAR metric (5.4 ). Beverley told KRIV’s Mark Berman to be traded by Jazz I didn’t catch him off guard because he was used to changed teams.
“Surprise? No, not in the industry. No, you can’t be surprised,” he said. “Got it. Never personal, ever in business in this industry. We did some great things in Minnesota. We transformed the environment there. We gave fans something to be happy about.”
Beverley, a second-round pick in 2009, began his career debuting with the Houston Rockets in the 2012-13 season Europe before the NBA. After five years in Houston, he spent four years with the Los Angeles Clippers and one year with the Wolves.
The Arkansas product is averaging 8.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists in 526 career games and 1.1 steals. He’s regularly tasked with defending opponents’ top scorers, highlighted by winning the NBA All-Defensive First Team in 2016-17.
Beverley is a low-risk addition to the Lakers. He’s a consistent and reliable defender, which helps offset some of the offensive decline as a career 41.4 percent shooter, and has no long-term investment as his one-year, $13 million contract expires. He should be Russell Westbrook’s main backup after Russell Westbrook moves to Los Angeles when he and Austin • The team’s backcourt defense should be great when Reeves is on the floor.
