NBA fans recalled Damian Lillard’s awkward beef with Patrick Beverley now that they’re Bucks teammates
The NBA is the best soap opera.
The Milwaukee Bucks needed to make a deal at the NBA trade deadline to improve their atrocious defense. Anyone who could improve their point-of-attack defense and take some heat off Damian Lillard defensively would’ve been welcome. They settled on Patrick Beverley, a notorious agitator known for his defensive prowess, and he will now likely start next to Lillard.
There’s just one problem for Lillard and Beverley as they try to pursue a Bucks title: They seemingly don’t like each other. Or at least, they haven’t always liked each other.
The most famous recent instance of this duo’s beef might be when they got chippy during a game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers in January 2023. After going at it with Lillard all night, Beverley corrected a reporter for not properly crediting his defense on the star guard during his postgame press conference.
Postgame Pat Bev: "If he would have cooked me you would have said 'I couldn't guard him.' But he misses a couple shots and it's a 'slow shooting night.' 'Good job on Dame' sounds better." pic.twitter.com/7l3Y6TwsQD
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 23, 2023
Lillard caught wind of the comments and responded with some heated words for the defender on Twitter:
Con man. Flip from above the rim https://t.co/EpKvfyY3VG
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) January 23, 2023
Oof. Yeah, that’s a lot to unpack for two guys that will have to work in concert now. For what it’s worth, according to a statement released through Chris Haynes, Lillard is ready to set aside his beef with Beverley for the greater good.
"There are not many players who bring it on the nightly like him. I look forward to working together. Our past personal issues don't trump an opportunity to win the championship." @ChrisBHaynes shares Damian Lillard's response to Milwaukee acquiring Patrick Beverley pic.twitter.com/bHab7bVEMv
— NBA TV (@NBATV) February 8, 2024
We’ll see how this duo gels in time for the Bucks’ stretch run. They’re both talented professionals in pursuit of grander goals together, so it’s not unbelievable to think they’d be good teammates. But it’s still impossible to ignore how they’ve butted heads in the past.