Los Angeles Lakers guard Patrick Beverley does not believe that Miami Heat point guard Kyle Lowry is one of the best defending guards in the NBA.
Comedian Kevin Hart listed Lowry as a good defensive point guard on his show “Cold as Balls,” but Beverley, his guest, disagreed.
“Defends okay, you’re just saying it because he’s from Philly,” Beverley said of Lowry.
Hart pushed back to defend Lowry, saying that he’s a strong guard, but Beverley shot him down again.
“No he’s not,” Beverley said.
Beverley went on to mention Jrue Holiday and Marcus Smart as other great defenders (along with himself) who play the point guard position.
It’s an interesting slight from Beverley, who has made there All-Defensive teams in his NBA career to Lowry’s zero.
However, Lowry has shown he can defend well enough to lead a championship team, winning a title with the Toronto Raptors in the 2018-19 season.
Lowry is certainly a superior offensive player to Beverley, especially this season. Lowry is averaging 14.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game for the Heat, while Beverley is putting up less than 6.0 points and 3.0 assists per game for the Lakers.
Even though Beverley may think that Lowry is just an average defender, the Heat guard’s advanced numbers say otherwise.
Per Basketball Reference, Lowry has posted a positive defensive box plus/minus in all but two of his 17 NBA seasons. That’s a pretty impressive number for a player who is asked to do far more on the offensive end than Beverley.
Lowry doesn’t have the accolades to be included in the same category as Smart (who won the Defensive Player of the Year award last season) and Holiday, but he’s no slouch on that side of the floor.
The Heat have been a solid defensive unit the past two seasons with Lowry on the roster, and they currently rank eighth in the NBA in defensive rating in the 2022-23 campaign.
Beverley is known for getting under his opponents skin and trash-talking them, so it’s no surprise he isn’t quick to give Lowry credit.
The Heat will actually face off with Beverley and the Lakers on Wednesday night in Miami. That game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. EST.
