Why Patrick Beverley Matters to the Houston Rockets

Just in case anyone forgot, Patrick Beverley is tough, combative, unrelenting and unapologetic in doling out the kind of on-ball defensive menace that never relaxes. It’s a given that no one who’s had to face him has ever thought otherwise.

Scrappy, chippy and disruptive, Beverley is a nightmare for opponents. He makes bringing the ball up the court—an act that should be like going downhill—an uphill battle.

He is disliked by almost everyone who faces him, a badge of honor he wears proudly. But his dogged determination and willingness to treat every defensive play like a high-stakes round is exactly what the Houston Rockets need if they want to stay above the Western Conference mean and make a deep run in the postseason.

“Pat’s a dog,” James Harden said. “He brings a lot to our team, especially on the defensive end.”

There’s a certain level of pride in doing one thing so well as to be completely defined by it.

To that end, Beverley revels in his reputation of fighting opposing players the whole 94 feet as a defensive stopper.

“I lay my hat on defense, and I’m going to continue to lay my hat on defense,” said Beverley, whose defensive rating this season (109) is already on par with that of last year (110). “I take that approach. I put myself and my teammates in position to make a lot of plays defensively that lead to our early offense.”

A recent example came early in the first quarter of the Rockets’ 126-190 win over the Utah Jazz on November 19 at the Toyota Center: Fighting through a double screen set by Rudy Gobert and Rodney Hood near the top of the key, Beverley, during just his second game back from left knee surgery, stripped Gordon Hayward in the middle of a fancy, behind-the-back dribble and took it the other way in a blur for a wide-open layup.

Houston went up 8-4, forcing head coach Quin Snyder to call a lighting-quick timeout to regroup.

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“Well, Pat, he’s all-in, and that’s what I like about him,” head coach Mike D’Antoni said. “He’s all-in and understanding the game, talking the game, watching film, understanding the game plan, understanding the players. I think our defense is getting a lot better with him out there because of his toughness. He is smart and plays with an edge. You’ve got to have that.”

Considering Beverley’s relentless fervor on the defensive end, it’s easy to surmise via snapshot analysis that his greatest value is in spelling Harden in spurts, standing in the corner for spot-up three-pointers and, of …

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