By admin 
Before signing with the Philadelphia 76ers, the Boston Celtics were interested in Patrick Beverley.On June 30, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports mentioned them as a possible suitor, before Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report announced Beverley’s deal with the Sixers.
On his podcast, “The Pat Bev Podcast With Rone,” Beverley identified them as a suitor, but said that former Celtics coach Doc Rivers wanted him to sign with the Sixers.
“I smacked Doc. ‘I’m thinking of going to Philadelphia. You were obviously present. ‘How did you find the situation?’ Now, this is a Hall of Fame coach who was dismissed, and his answer was, in his own words, “I love Philadelphia for you.” They require your assistance. You’ll get along wonderfully with Joel (Embiid). He respects you, James (Harden). You’ll be fantastic with him. We would have been a different team if I had you last season.”
Beverley stated that while he had planned to join the Celtics, Rivers’ encouragement convinced him to join the Sixers.
“Once Doc gave me the green light, I called my agent back and said, ‘Man, give me the end of the day.'” Do you want me to talk to some other teams? I’m going to call Boston. I’m going to talk to Washington,’ but when Doc gave me the green light, I…trusted Doc.”
Rivers coached Beverley on the Boston Celtics from 2004 to 2013, and for the Los Angeles Clippers from 2017 to 2020. The Sixers fired Rivers two days after losing to the Celtics in the 2023 Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Celtics, according to Beverley, had more money to offer than the Sixers, but they requested him to wait. However, because Beverley, among other things, did not want to do that, he accepted the Sixers’ offer.
“I spoke with my representatives. It might be Philly. It could be Boston. It might be Washington. I’m going to have a little more money in Boston or Washington. Let’s wait and see. Let’s wait and see. ‘F*** it,’ I tell my agency. Take the plunge. I’m not going to wait.’ Nick Nurse is appealing to me. Obviously, I had to take a wage cut, but it was never about the money. Do you get what I’m saying? Everything revolves around basketball.”
Players and teams both dislike being made to wait after free agency begins since it can lead to additional offers and alternatives drying up as time passes. The Celtics most likely urged Beverley to wait because they wanted to see how Grant Williams and Jaylen Brown’s situations played out first.
Grant Williams Is Known As ‘First Domino’ In Free Agency
Many have asked why the Celtics haven’t done anything with Williams’ restricted free agency and Brown’s upcoming extension.According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic, the Celtics are first considering addressing Williams’ free agency.
“While the Jaylen Brown contract extension is the most important piece of business, league and team sources told The Athletic that the first domino they expect to fall will be Grant Williams’ restricted free agency,” Weiss wrote.
Weiss said that despite how much money has already been spent during the free agency era, Williams has a slew of suitors.
“Though most of the league’s cap space has dried up at this point, the expectation with Williams has always been a sign-and-trade or midlevel exception (MLE).”According to league sources, Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, New York, and Washington are still in the running, with Williams eligible to sign an offer sheet on July 6.”