Patrick Beverley Says He Chose Bulls Contract over Warriors: 'I Get to Rep My City'

Veteran guard Patrick Beverley explained Monday why he chose to sign with the Chicago Bulls over the Golden State Warriors.

Speaking on his Pat Bev Podcast (h/t Farbod Esnaashari of FanNation), Beverley suggested that an opportunity for playing time and the allure of playing close to home led to him picking the Bulls over the Warriors:

"I'm going to be taking my talents back home. It was between Golden State and the Bulls. Obviously, it's always good to play with a lot of great talent in Golden State, but y'know, a lot of guards over there. So, I figured I could make a playoff push with the Bulls right now, and kinda pop them up a little bit. The East is kinda weak. I'm excited man, I'm excited. I get to take my son to school. I get to take my son and baby girl to school, I get to pick them up, I get to rep my city on my chest."

Beverley began the season with the Los Angeles Lakers following an offseason trade with the Utah Jazz, but he was moved to the Orlando Magic at the trade deadline in a deal for center Mo Bamba.

Orlando then bought Beverley out of his contract, freeing him up to sign with the interested team of his choosing.

The 34-year-old Beverley is a Chicago native who is getting the chance to call the Windy City his NBA home for the first time in his 11-year career.

Beverley has had stops with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Lakers, and during that time he has built a reputation as a gritty, hard-nosed player who especially excels at the defensive end of the court.

He is a three-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection, including just three seasons ago when he last earned the distinction as a member of the Clippers.

Beverley is the type of veteran teams typically like to have down the stretch and in the playoffs, although his production this season is lower than usual.

Despite starting all 45 of the games he appeared in with the Lakers and averaging 26.9 minutes per game, Beverley is putting up just 6.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per contest, both of which are his worst marks since his rookie season with the Rockets in 2012-13.

Also, his 2.6 assists and 1.2 three-pointers made per game are the second-fewest of his career, and his 0.9 steals per contest are below his career average of 1.1.

With Zach LaVine, Ayo Dosunmu, Coby White, Alex Caruso and Goran Dragić in Chicago's backcourt, Beverley won't necessarily be asked to play a huge role, but he could replace something the Bulls have been missing this season.

Lonzo Ball is one of the better defensive point guards in the NBA, but he hasn't played at all this season due to a knee injury, and he may not play at all during the 2022-23 campaign.

The Bulls will be hoping that Beverley can provide a spark of some kind, as they lost six games in a row entering the All-Star break, dropping them to 26-33 on the year.

Despite that, the Bulls are still in the thick of the playoff hunt, as they are just two games behind the 10th-place Toronto Raptors for the final postseason play-in spot.

Chicago would be further out in the West, which speaks to Beverley's opinion that the East is a weaker conference with more opportunity to make up ground.

The Warriors are 29-29 on the season, putting them in ninth place, but they are just one game out of sixth, which would put them straight into the playoffs and above the play-in tournament.

They are in a precarious position and could tumble down the standings if they go on a losing streak, but superstar guard Stephen Curry is expected back soon, and they figure to be far tougher to contend with once that happens.

The Warriors tried to strengthen their backcourt depth and team defense at the deadline when they acquired guard Gary Payton II from the Portland Trail Blazers in a four-team trade, but a physical found that Payton was more badly injured than initially thought, and he will miss at least a month with a core muscle injury.

Golden State will largely roll with the guard trio of Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole and Donte DiVincenzo until returns, meaning there would have been some opportunity for Beverley, but the allure of playing in his hometown was seemingly too significant to pass up.