Wednesday’s heavyweight bout between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Clippers more than lived up to the hype. The closely contested game came down to the wire, when the Rockets pulled away, and Austin Rivers expertly trolled his father.
As the season progresses, this has all the potential of becoming the most heated rivalry in the NBA, thanks in large part to Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley, whose long-simmering rivalry boiled over at the end of the game.
After Beverley fouled out, Westbrook was seen waving goodbye to the Clippers’ notoriously pesky guard.
When the game ended, Westbrook couldn't help but get a shot in. According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Westbrook said that Beverley’s reputation as a top defender is a “trick,” and pointed out that James Harden scored 47 points, many of them while being guarded by Beverley.
“He don't guard nobody, man. He just running around, doing nothing, Westbrook said.
When Beverley was asked about Westbrook’s comments, he had no interest in adding fuel to the fire.
The feud between Westbrook and Beverley goes all the way back to 2013, when Westbrook suffered a serious injury in the playoffs after Beverley made a dangerous play for the ball. Five years later, the two players got into a heated exchange after Beverley made another questionable attempt for the ball.
The next matchup between these two teams just became appointment television.
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