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Milwaukee Bucks guard and professional troll Patrick Beverely made a mockery of himself on Thursday night during and following his team’s series-ending loss to the Indiana Pacers.
After chucking a ball at a fan during the closing stages of the 4th quarter, Beverely continued his tour of poor behavior by then mistreating a female reporter after the game because she doesn’t subscribe to his podcast.
In the hours since Beverley’s clownish lashing out at the producer, ESPN’s Malinda Adams, sports media personalities from all across the country have come racing to her defense.
“To my friend Malinda Adams , you have made so many assignments feel safe and comfy for all of us with your professionalism. You are beloved,” NFL Live host Laura Rutledge wrote. “To those who don’t know her: We call her ‘Mama Malinda’ because of her warmth and kindness. She is one of my favorite people in life, not just at ESPN. To see her disrespected for no reason while just doing her job makes me sick. I look forward to the massive apology she is owed.”
Rutledge wasn’t alone in her opinion of Adams, as the likes of Brian Windhorst, Marty Smith, Malika Andrews, Randy Scott, Rachel Nichols and more were all vocal about how kind and professional Adams is.
“Veteran producer Malinda Adams happens to be one of the most respected and professional people we have at ESPN. Bev, you’re going to have to make a couple apologies for stuff tonight,” said ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst.
“Just so y’all know, the beautiful soul to whom he directed this foolishness is Malinda Adams, who is among the kindest, hardest-working, best, most-respected people in ALL of media — not just at ESPN — and the dearest of friends to all of her friends,” Marty Smith proclaimed.
“Malinda is one of the best in the business — a consummate pro. Not to mention one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet,” NBA Today host Malika Andrews chimed in.
When he wasn’t hitting a female fan in the head with a basketball
Or scoring 6pts in 40mins on 3 for 11 shooting@patbev21 pulled 🤡 nonsense on a veteran producer just doing her job
Asking PatBev to be better is a waste of time
Just don’t be thispic.twitter.com/mOdOGUXzyE
— Randy Scott (@RandyScottESPN) May 3, 2024
Even sports media personalities who no longer work at ESPN came to Adams’ defense, such as veteran journalist Rachel Nichols.
“None of this is okay. The woman he’s addressing is one of the most accomplished and professional TV producers not just at ESPN but in all of sports media, which makes Pat look even more foolish here. (That he’s apparently done this before this season to other people doesn’t excuse anything btw, it only begs the question of how it’s been allowed to keep happening),” Nichols tweeted.
Just before Noon on Friday, May 3, Adams herself made a public statement and said that Beverley has called her to apologize.