Thursday, August 12, 2010

Miami Heat's Patrick Beverley Could Surprise, Win Point Guard Role

610x.jpgThat guy does not trust his head around Pat Beverley, watch the video below to find out why


Pat Beverley was recently signed to a two year fully guaranteed contract without much fan fare. The 2009 second round pick was sent to Greek powerhouse Olympiakos last year after his acquisition from the Lakers for a 2011 draft pick plus one million dollars.

The second part of that trade - one million dollars - is what makes me believe he is not merely "camp fodder" as Ira Winderman suggests on his blog. Of course, you do not compound a bad investment by throwing more money and a roster spot at it if your evaluation was wrong, or if the player no longer fits - neither of which seem to be the case at this point, as a defensive stopper with a high ceiling at the point seems to be just what the doctor ordered.

Beverley is a hardworking player who has offensive potential, but is already a force on defense. He was once a hyped prospect, the 2006-07 SEC freshman of the year at Arkansas and one of the leaders for the under 19 Team USA alongside the recently departed Michael Beasley. He is the real deal, but has fallen off of the path a bit. His two successful stints abroad indicate that he is serious about making it in the league. Keep in mind that this is a youngster who caught Wade's eye at Tim Grover's gym prior to the 2009 NBA draft. Check out what Scoop Jackson said about him last year on ESPN Chicago. I also attached a link for a preview for the documentary referenced in the article:

http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/columns/story?columnist=jackson_scoop&id=4300069

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJiVFR_EQrw&feature=related

His defensive game is so stifling that Pat Riley refers to him a defensive stopper. I focused on him at the European final and watched him change the complexity of that game by forcing Ricky Rubio into multiple mistakes that got him benched within a few erratic possessions. Riley is not blowing smoke, Bev would be a pitbull of a situational defender off the bench until his game rounds into shape.

He may not be ready for a starting job in the NBA, but then again let's compare his statistics with another young PG who recently played in Italy (a comparable league to the Greek).

17 mins 5.5 pts 37.7 FG% 20.7 3 pt% 64.5 FT% 1.6 rebs 2.3 asts 2.1stls 0.0 blks 1.5 to 2.0 pf

17 mins 5.6 pts 60.5 FG% 36.4 3 pt% 65.7 FT% 3.4 rebs 2.2 asts 0.8 stls 0.50 blks 0.8 to 0.2 pf

Player one is Brandon Jennings, the way more heralded prospect with a flashy offensive arsenal. Player two is Mr. Beverley, who still lacks confidence in his offensive game, but is described as a coaches dream, because he attacks the loose balls (as evidenced by the high rebounding total) and the rim with regularity (as evidenced by the ridiculously high shooting percentage).

Ira Winderman is sleeping on his talent, but there is no reason why any of you should. Today marks the beginning of what should be a long and productive NBA career. I am almost Stephen A Smith "bet the house" sure that Beverley will be hounding Rajon Rondo in a Heat uniform this season. He certainly is the frontrunner for the defensive stopper role.

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