Beverley was traded to the Jazz from the Minnesota Timberwolves earlier this summer in the blockbuster Rudy Gobert Trade. But with the Jazz embarking on a rebuild — star guard Donovan Mitchell could be traded at some point this offseason as well — Beverley was a prime candidate to be traded to another team. A veteran and one of the toughest perimeter defenders in the league, Beverley makes a lot more sense on this Lakers roster. The Lakers had all kinds of problems last season as they finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs, but few were bigger than their inability to stop anyone. they allowed 112.8 points per 100 possessions, which was 21st in the league. Some of that was due to injuries and some of that was poor roster construction, but regardless of where you want to place most of the blame, the bottom line is that they just weren’t good enough defensively. Check the opt-in box to confirm you want to join.
Thanks for subscribing!
Monitor your inbox.
Sorry!
An error occurred while processing your subscription.
Beverley won’t solve all of their issues, but he will single-handedly make them tougher and better on the defensive side of the ball. He’s also a reliable 3-point shooter — 38.5 percent on catch-and-shoot attempts last season — who can help LeBron James and provide some extra play. While he’s not the most exciting addition, he’s the type of consistent player the Lakers lacked last season. For much of the summer, the league was in limbo waiting for the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving situations to be resolved. With both of those players now residing in Brooklyn, it will be interesting to see if the proverbial barrier breaks and more moves follow this Beverley trade. The Lakers’ desire to land Russell Westbrook is no secret, and now that Beverley is in town, they have someone who can take his place in the starting lineup. Of course, in order to do that they have to find another team willing to take Westbrook and that has proven difficult thus far. However, this is a situation to watch closely in the coming weeks if other dominoes start to fall. There’s not that much to talk about on the Utah side. Danny Ainge started a teardown with the Gobert trade and there was no reason to keep Beverley as he joined the race to the bottom and waited for No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama. They’ll get a look at another young player in Horton-Tucker who has shown some flashes of being an interesting role player on defense but hasn’t been consistent at all on the offensive end. If they can develop him into a part of their core going forward, great. if not, no big deal.
Commercial Grades
Lakers: Beverley is a solid addition for the Lakers, as he will bring some intensity and tenacity — especially on the defensive end — that the team simply lacked last season. It also gives them some added security at the point guard position given the uncertainty surrounding Westbrook’s future with the franchise. If Westbrook is eventually traded, Beverley could step into the vacant starting spot. Or, if he’s just having an off night and Darwin Hamm wants to go in a different direction, Beverly provides the coach with another viable option. It will be interesting to see how well Westbrook and Beverley can coexist in the locker room, as the two have had issues in the past. While Beverley’s impact will likely be felt more on the defensive end, he also projects as a solid player in LA on the other end. He’s not the type of player who needs to have a lot of games to be effective, which is a good thing because the Lakers already have a few of those. Additionally, as a career 37 percent shooter from long range, Beverley will be able to space the floor around James and Anthony Davis. The Lakers have been hesitant to move Horton-Tucker in the past, but in Beverly they got a player better equipped to contribute to a team under heavy pressure to make a playoff run. Horton-Tucker could turn out to be the better player in the long run, but the Lakers are in a win-now situation, which is why the move was made. Grade: B Jazz: The Jazz are a long way from Donovan Mitchell being in the middle of a full rebuild, so it makes sense to flip an established veteran in Beverly for a young player in the 21-year-old Horton-Tucker who potentially still has some upside. He averaged 10 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 25.2 minutes per game for the Lakers last season — numbers that could potentially improve in an expanded role on a rebuilding Jazz team. The Lakers have been high on Horton-Tucker for some time, and now the Jazz will hope he continues to improve. Stanley Johnson is a serviceable role player, but it remains to be seen how big a role he will have in Utah. Mostly it feels like a throw-in to the deal. Basically, Utah got a player who could potentially fit into their long-term plans in exchange for one who didn’t. Grade: B-
