Will Beverley’s trade to Lakers be too much for Clippers fans?

With Patrick Beverley making a move to the Lakers, will Clippers fans still show the same love or will it be too much to stomach?

“It’s a business, obviously. I have friends that, lifetime friends here. Marcus Morris, Paul George, Kawhi, T. Mann, Big Zu, T. Lue, guys on the coaching staff. You know you’ve been to hell and back with some of the guys that’s still on the roster. But still, you know, it’s not personal. It’s a business.”

That was Patrick Beverley when he had his first chance to speak about his trade from the Clippers back in January 2022, and he has since gone on to shed more light on the “borderline disrespectful” salary offered to him by the Los Angeles Clippers’ front office last summer on former Clipper J.J. Redick’s podcast Old Man & The Three.

One of the recurring themes that comes from Pat’s words is that he didn’t want to be traded away from Los Angeles, but he wasn’t prepared to let them undervalue his service to the team since he joined in 2017, plus what he could still offer. That’s business, as he says.

He was vindicated when he knocked off the Clippers to help Minnesota reach the playoffs, which he had promised upon joining the organization. At that point it seemed more like a matter of personal pride to Beverley, but longtime fans of his will know that’s just the way he’s wired. He’ll actively relish and never back down from any challenge.

So when he was presented the chance to join the other team in Los Angeles, to play alongside his nemesis Russell Westbrook on the Lakers, it should be little surprise that he so bullishly took it.

The trade rumor mill has since suggested that Russ won’t have quite the same feeling around it as his new teammate, but you can believe that the former Clipper would embrace the opportunity to let bygones be bygones and shut down a whole other section of his critics.

The move could yet bring about new haters for Beverley, and it could end up being the same supporters that used to chant his name inside the arena formerly known as STAPLES.

Some members of Clipper Nation will embrace the move as the latest episode in the roller coaster of Pat’s career, but for some it will be all too bittersweet. After all, there were fans who had already adjudged him to have trodden the line of being disrespectful after his former team’s play-in victory back in April. Being happy about getting the job done is one thing, but there’s a decorum some expected that seemingly wasn’t there.

Again though, it comes back to the original quote from Pat at the top of this article. This move isn’t about the Clippers or disrespecting where he came from and the people that supported him to get to where he is. It’s about having the opportunity to further his career once again, and getting the chance to play with LeBron James — who he spent time alongside during a brief spell with the Miami Heat, shortly before taking his talents to Europe.

Beverley has had to fight for everything throughout his career, and now he’ll be fighting for the respect of those fans from across the hall at The Crypt. Some of his old fans may feel disillusioned after his latest move, but he’d only see that as extra motivation to ensure it’s a successful one.