On Monday morning, Patrick Beverley used an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up to take shots at Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul. Later in the day, ESPN analyst Matt Barnes retaliated, saying Beverley should wear a clown nose for his comments.
Beverley drew the ire of the former 14-year veteran when he was discussing Paul’s performance in the Suns’ series with the Mavericks. After scoring just 35 points in the final four games of the series, Beverley suggested that Paul be benched and compared him to a stationary “cone” on defense.
.@Matt_Barnes22 was not a fan of Patrick Beverley's criticism of Chris Paul:
"There's a thin line between being critical and disrespecting. And I feel like what Pat Beverley did today to Chris Paul, was completely disrespectful and out of the line." pic.twitter.com/3q2xmJLrB8
— ESPN (@espn) May 16, 2022
“I feel like what Pat Beverley did to Chris Paul was completely disrespectful and out of line,” Barnes said. “Pat Beverley is talking like he’s that guy. You’re not that guy. Plain and simple. Chris Paul played terrible this series and his numbers are still better than your career numbers have ever been.”
Barnes also pointed out the difference between the type of agitating role player that he and Beverley were during their careers and Paul, who is a 12-time All-Star, nine-time All-Defensive Team selection and future Hall of Famer.
“They don’t talk about us when we [retire],” Barnes said. “They’re going to talk about CP3 when he’s done. I just think the disrespect that we saw earlier today needs to be checked because he was way out of pocket.”
After Richard Jefferson and Ramona Shelburne noted Beverley’s competitive nature as a possible reason for his comments, Barnes took it a step further by suggesting a new career path.
“All he needed was the red clown nose because he was talking like a clown today,” Barnes said. “CP3 is a legend in this game and we were role players in this game. So have some respect for guys. He played terrible. He would be the first one to tell you, but the shots that Pat Bev took today were just out of pocket. I know no one else is going to tell him that, so I’m going to tell him that.”
Portland All-Star Damian Lillard also didn’t like Beverley’s attack on national TV, tweeting that it was “weird behavior.”
Bra on TV acting like his word law. Speaking on private convos and praying on mfs downfall. This weird behavior smh 🤷🏽‍♂️ … I ain’t got a horse in the race https://t.co/F6Cln8BBst
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) May 16, 2022
@Dame_Lillard yo Coach got my number🙏🏾🙏🏾
— Patrick Beverley (@patbev21) May 16, 2022
It likely won’t be the last analyst to jump on Beverley’s comments as Paul is one of the most popular players in the NBA. With this league’s passion for drama, however, it should be enough to drive Timberwolves/Suns ticket sales for next season.
