Sixers Coaches Giving Patrick Beverley Confidence Boost on Offense
When the Philadelphia 76ers signed Patrick Beverley, many figured it was for his defense and veteran leadership. That might have been the case, but they still need him to provide some sort of production on offense.
At the start of the year, Beverley had his struggles offensively. However, the Sixers guard has found a groove as of late. Over his last seven games, Beverley is averaging 10.6 PPG and 3.6 APG while shooting a stellar 46.4% from beyond the arc. His most notable performance came against the Boston Celtics when he tied his career-high with 26 points.
In the Sixers' blowout win against the Washington Wizards Monday, Beverley notched 12 points and connected on three of his four attempts from deep. After the game, he talked about the confidence boost he's received from the coaching staff. Even though he's made a living on defense, they continue to push him to be more involved on offense.
"I've been blessed and fortunate to have a coaching staff with Nick Nurse, they got a lot of confidence in this group," Beverley said Monday. "Obviously, they tell me to shoot a ton of shots, I like to stay in the middle and play the game the right way. I guess on this team I got to shoot more. It's been going in lately and I've been having fun with it."
Even when he isn't on a hot streak, the Sixers need the supporting cast to be willing shooters. Defenses are going to send multiple bodies at Joel Embiid constantly. If the players around him aren't making the defense pay for sagging off, it limits what the reigning MVP can do offensively.
Another reason why Nick Nurse continues to push Beverley is because he has a track record of being an efficient shooter. From 2016 to 2021, he shot between 38%-40% from deep on decent volume with the Houston Rockets and LA Clippers. If he can do the same for the Sixers, it will allow Nurse to keep him in longer. With extended minutes, Beverley has a better chance of impacting the game with his defense.
