It looked like the Los Angeles Lakers were heading toward a tough loss, but they managed to pull themselves together in the second half to steal a win against the Indiana Pacers.
The Lakers were trailing by double-digits for most of the night before putting together a run in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Anthony Davis was the driving force behind the win, hitting what would end up being the game-winning shot and corralling the defensive rebound on the Pacers’ final possession.
Along with Davis, Patrick Beverley had a hand in the game’s outcome as he provided excellent defensive pressure on Tyrese Haliburton. When asked after the game about his matchup with Haliburton, Beverley admitted it was personal, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I heard Haliburton did an interview a while ago and he mentioned my name. And for a first-year guy to mention my name, especially all the work I’ve done in this league defensively, I felt it was, I wouldn’t say disrespectful, but I remembered his words. So I took it kind of personal and I wanted that challenge tonight, coach gave it to me, and subscribe to the pod.”
The interview Beverley was referring to was an appearance Haliburton made on “The Old Man & the Three” podcast where he was asked about a trash-talking moment that stuck out to him. Haliburton brought up a story from when Beverley was on the Minnesota Timberwolves and said Haliburton was lucky he didn’t guard him that night, which left the latter confused.
It didn’t sound like Haliburton was trying to disrespect Beverley with his comments, though the Lakers veteran seems like the type of player who will use any sort of talk to motivate him. Whatever the reason, it worked as Beverley was able to force Haliburton into some uncomfortable situations that L.A. used to capitalize on down the stretch.
Although it’s been good to see Beverley rounding into form as of late, he is potentially a candidate to be traded before the deadline next week as the Lakers roster still has areas that need addressing. Outside shooting and more perimeter size should be the focus for the front office, so it’ll be interesting to see if Beverley is on the team late next week.
Lakers looking to upgrade from Beverley at trade deadline
Beverley has been playing well as of late, but because he’s on an expiring $13 million deal the Lakers would be wise to move him ahead of the trade deadline. In fact, reports have surfaced that the team is looking to potentially upgrade at the guard spot by dealing away defensive-minded veteran.
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