Patrick Beverley admits he crossed a line when he threw a basketball at a fan last week, but the Milwaukee Bucks star claims the fan crossed the line first.
Beverley was caught by television cameras throwing a ball at a fan with just over two minutes left in Milwaukee’s Game 6 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night, which ended the opening-round playoff series between the two teams. You can see the video here.
Beverley spoke about the incident during the latest episode of his podcast, which was released on Tuesday. He said what he did was “wrong” and vowed to never let it happen again. However, Beverley said the fan he threw the ball at said a lot more than “Cancun on 3.”
“What I did was bad and that should have never happened. I have to be better and I will be better. Regardless of what was said, that should have never happened,” Beverley said. “Let’s just say it was more than ‘Cancun on 3.’ Let’s just say it was more than that. I’ve been called a lot of stuff in this league. I haven’t been called that one. It’s still inexcusable. It doesn’t matter what was said. I have to be better and I will be better.”
Pat Bev talks about what transpired at the end of the Bucks vs Pacers game
Have to be better. Will be better. New Episode out tomorrow @patbev21 @rone pic.twitter.com/TMFQFdi0sx
— Pat Bev Pod (@PatBevPod) May 7, 2024
A report from The Athletic claimed the fan shouted “Cancun on 3” while the Bucks were breaking their sideline huddle. That is a common way of heckling players for their season being over. The report said some other obscenities were directed toward Beverley before that particular taunt.
Beverley said several fans said things to him that would have warranted ejections. He claimed security guards even asked him if he wanted to have certain fans kicked out of the game but that he declined.
The NBA probably will not care what was said to Beverley, as a player throwing a ball at a fan is a terrible look at best and a potential lawsuit at worst.
Beverley also drew criticism after Game 6 when he refused to speak with an ESPN reporter because she does not subscribe to his podcast. ESPN has reportedly responded by banning Beverley from appearing on the network as a guest.
