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Patrick Beverley, G, Ukraine
Beverley put on one of the most energetic performances in Eurocamp history. He was absolutely relentless on both ends of the floor, playing with a big chip on his shoulder, trying to prove to the scouts in attendance that he belongs in the NBA (he played two years of college ball at Arkansas). They were paying attention.
Offensively, Beverley is lightning in a bottle, shooting up and down the floor, attacking the rim with explosive dunks, weaving in and out of defenses to find an open jump shooter and knocking down jump shot after jump shot. His two best games came on Saturday (14 points, 6 boards, 5 steals, 4 assists) and Sunday morning (11 points, 6 assists, 5 boards, 2 steals). Most importantly for scouts trying to figure out if Beverley is a point guard, he didn't commit a single turnover.
Defensively, Beverley was a nightmare for the slower, more finesse-oriented European players. My favorite Beverley play had to be when he forcefully blocked out 6-foot-10 Vladimir Dasic on three consecutive plays. You don't see 6-1 guys do that every day.
And while scouts remain split on his potential to play the point, they seem sold on his future as an NBA player.
"He's going to make a team if he keeps playing defense like that," one NBA GM said. "A lot of young guys fall out of the league because they aren't willing to work and do the little things that a coach asks them to. Beverley will do that. I thought he was terrific, and he proved to me that he wanted it. He wasn't on my draft board before this camp. He is now."
Virtually every other GM and scout I spoke with agreed. Given Beverley's strong workouts in Miami and Chicago and in the group workouts in Minnesota and at Golden State, I don't think you can count him out of the late first round. It's a long shot, but he's done enough over the past few weeks to go from a virtual unknown to a serious prospect.
Chad Ford - Insider
Sounds like he has a few traits that would attract the Spurs . . .
