Bucks’ Patrick Beverley suspended 4 games for throwing ball at fans, ‘inappropriate’ interaction with journalist

Multiple instances of bad behavior earned Patrick Beverley a four-game suspension, the NBA announced Thursday.

The suspension without pay comes in response to the Milwaukee Bucks guard twice throwing a basketball into the stands during a playoff loss in Indianapolis and then denying an ESPN journalist during his postgame media scrum because she wasn’t subscribed to his podcast.

Both incidents garnered widespread backlash.

In its announcement, the NBA said Beverley threw the ball “forcefully” at spectators. The league described his interaction with ESPN producer Malinda Adams as “inappropriate.”

The incidents occurred at Game 6 of the Bucks’ first-round loss to the Pacers last week. Beverley’s first throw of the basketball struck a woman in the crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. After getting the ball back, Beverley threw it into the stands again, that time hitting a man.

On Wednesday, Beverley, 35, released an episode of his “The Pat Bev Podcast” in which he addresses the ball-throwing incident, saying a fan heckled him with a name he had never been called before.

“I have to be better, and I will be better,” Beverley said. “That should have never happened. Regardless of what was said, that should have never happened.”

Beverley added the alleged comment was “more” than “Cancun on three,” a common taunt toward players facing postseason elimination. The Athletic’s Shams Charania had reported the situation “escalated” after a fan yelled the phrase.

Following the loss, which ended the Bucks’ season, Beverley asked Adams if she was subscribed to his podcast. When she said she wasn’t, Beverley told her, “You can’t interview me then.”

Beverley then pushed her microphone away and asked her to leave the circle as he addressed other media members.

“Patrick Beverley just called me and apologized,” Adams wrote on social media a day after the exchange. “I appreciate it and accept it. The Bucks also reached out to apologize. I’ve been in news for over 40 years and kindness and grace always win.”

Beverley is set to be an unrestricted free agent and would serve the suspension next season. He signed a one-year, minimum contract with the Philadelphia 76ers before the 2023-24 season and was traded to the Bucks in February.

Thursday’s discipline marks the third suspension for Beverley, who also received a one-game ban in 2021 for shoving Chris Paul and a three-game penalty in 2022 for shoving DeAndre Ayton.

Earlier in the playoffs, the NBA did not discipline 76ers star Joel Embiid for a flagrant-one foul in which he pulled Knicks center Mitchell Robinson to the ground by his legs.

The NBA fined Denver’s Jamal Murray $100,000 for throwing a heat pack and a towel onto the court during Game 2 of the Nuggets’ second-round series against the Timberwolves amid frustrations with the officiating. Murray was not suspended.