Patrick Beverley reportedly taunts Lonzo Ball after shutting down Lakers rookie

Beverley handcuffed Lonzo on the court, and the emotion carried into the locker room

Clippers guard Patrick Beverley made it his mission to make Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball's NBA debut miserable, and by all accounts he succeeded in the Clippers' 108-92 season-opening win.

Ball finished with three points and four assists, and the statistics say he was absolutely smothered while Beverley was guarding him.

Beverley got extremely physical with Ball, picking him up at full court and giving him some love taps as a friendly welcome to the league.

Just getting the win and shutting down the much-hyped rookie wasn't enough for Beverley, it seems. According to ESPN's Marc Spears, Beverley taunted Lonzo after the game outside the locker room. From Spears:

"Clippers guard Patrick Beverly screamed outside locker room, 'Weak ass m----- f-----. Bring him out on the court with me and I will tear his ass up.' It's presumed Beverly is talking about Lakers rookie guard Lonzo Ball."

During a postgame interview it appeared that Beverley had calmed down a bit and acknowledged going hard on Ball, but said it would eventually make the rookie better.

Beverley is known as one of the best defensive point guards in the NBA, so it's no surprise that he went after Ball in his first ever NBA game. Lonzo will likely have to deal with the large target on his back for at least the first part of the season.

Our Latest Stories