It was on November 19 that Denver Nuggets point guard Russell Westbrook scored 12 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and dished out 14 assists. It was yet another triple-double for the 36-year-old, something that has become synonymous with his career. As a matter of fact, it was the 200th of his career. That is the most in NBA history, 19 more than what second-place Oscar Robertson accumulated during his playing time.
While Westbrook has put up numbers that really haven’t been done before in league history, very few list him as the best point guard to lace them up. The debate for the GOAT point guard for many is mostly between Magic Johnson and Stephen Curry. If you ask 14-year NBA veteran Patrick Beverley though, he has a different take.
Pat Bev Says Former Rival ‘Greatest PG Ever To Play The Game’
Beverley Proclaims Westbrook As The Greatest
The 36-year-old Beverley is currently playing with Hapoel Tel Aviv in the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He ended last season with the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA.
Beverley has one of the more popular basketball podcasts, The Pat Bev Podcast. On the most recent episode, he had the utmost praise for Westbrook. Beverley said of Westbrook,
“We’re going off skill-based. We’re going off talent. We’re going off numbers. This is an individual award. I mean, you have to put him up there as the greatest point guard ever to play the game. We’re not talking about championships; individual statistics, that’s all I’m talking about. What makes you better than the next person? Championships don’t. That don’t make you better than the next person. You might have a better team, but that [doesn’t] make you better than the next person.”
Beverley makes a valid point in stating that rings don’t necessarily make a player better than another. When it comes to basketball GOAT conversations though, many aren’t even going to consider someone if they never won an NBA Finals. Westbrook has one NBA Finals appearance back in 2012 while with the Oklahoma City Thunder, but they lost to the Miami Heat in five games.
Is Russell Westbrook up there with the best PGs to every play the game? 🏀 pic.twitter.com/1uIf9XKqzo
— Pat Bev Pod (@PatBevPod) November 27, 2024
As good as Chris Paul has been, he also doesn’t have a ring. That’s why him and Westbrook are often excluded from GOAT point guard conversations. Meanwhile, Magic won five in his career and Curry has four.
Prior Well-Documented History Between The Two
There was a time when the public believed Westbrook and Beverley had beef with each other. Their history is detailed in this Basketball Forever article. It started when a collision between the two in the 2013 NBA playoffs caused a meniscus injury to Westbrook, ending his postseason run. Years later, Westbrook claimed that Beverley ‘tricks’ people into believing that he is a good defender.
The two became teammates though to begin the 2022-23 season with the Los Angeles Lakers. Both were traded during that season, but they still spent more than half the season together as teammates. While Westbrook was often a scapegoat for any Lakers troubles, the two didn’t appear to have any friction with each other.
With Beverley’s comments, it’s certain that if the two didn’t get along at some point, that stage is over.
