PG Patrick Beverley Defends Fellow Chicagoan Derrick Rose Publicly

Patrick Beverley may not strike many as an NBA player with serious clout, but when you fight your way from the bottom like he did, then respect must be given. The feisty point guard was once a D-League player; however, he has since earned his way to a starting role with the Houston Rockets by outplaying Jeremy Lin last season.

Beverley’s team recently laid another loss onto the Chicago Bulls behind James Harden‘s electric performance in the first half, but the PG also stood up before this one against those who have criticized fellow Chicagoan Derrick Rose.

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“It’s hard to really explain if you’re not from Chicago,” Beverley said to USA TODAY Sports. “Born and raised in the city, grew up on the streets of Chicago. For him to do what he did for the city and actually put the city on his back, get the MVP, lead them to different amounts of playoffs, battling the Miami Heat. For him to take that constructive criticism after injuries, you know, you don’t plan to get injured, no one wants to get injured. So he is a friend before anything and I am supportive of anything he does. He has definitely been a role model for my family and for a lot of kids in Chicago. My friends are his best friends, his best friends are my best friends, every summer we travel together. We’re close to each other’s family, but when we’re on the court everyone is trying to compete and win a basketball game.”

While Beverley might no longer live in the Windy City, I imagine the place still has a soft spot in his heart. He has dealt with his own knee injuries, and the level of national scrutiny surrounding Rose at times must seem quite unfair.

This will be an interesting stretch of time for Chicago and their franchise PG. He will be sitting at home watching his teammates Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol play in the All-Star Game next weekend, and it should be illuminating to see if the Bulls enter that break on a low or high note.

Having a positive state of mind could do wonders for them during their respite, and it would prove especially helpful to be on point as they enter a part of the season crucial to deciding playoff position. Would they be favored against the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors in a series? Probably. But the Cleveland Cavaliers have had a resurgence as of late, and the Bulls do not have any single player who can contain LeBron James when he is at an MVP level.

This is a defining moment for the Bulls. On Saturday, they play a team that recently broke up a huge winning streak by the Atlanta Hawks in the New Orleans Pelicans. Will Anthony Davis and company rock the Bulls to their fourth straight loss? That would be regrettable, and Tom Thibodeau must be wondering what has happened to his team’s defensive attitude in the last year. If they do not find it fast, then we could be talking about this as a season of lost opportunities.

Next: Jimmy Butler Takes Blame for Defense

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