Hardwood Paroxysm: Basketball’s Multi-Sport Athletes

Avery Bradley Would Make a Great Defensive Midfielder

By Jack Maloney (@jmaloney9)

Avery Bradley is known for his aggressive perimeter defense — it’s what he does best on the basketball court. All game long he hounds opposing guards, frustrating them, forcing them to exhaust their reserves just to get the ball over half-court. The tenacity and hard-working nature Bradley exhibits would allow him to make a seamless transition to a defensive midfield position on the football pitch (a.k.a. soccer field for those of you that aren’t true football fans like I am. Go Everton.) Defensive mids are expected to stop attacks before they begin, to intercept key passes and mark the opposing team’s most dangerous offensive players. These responsibilities are already ingrained in Bradley’s nature, and he has the athletic ability to pursue them. There’s little doubt that should Bradley be so inclined, he could be in the starting eleven when the USMNT takes the field in Russia four years from now.

Patrick Beverley Would Make a Great Hockey Instigator

By Seth Partnow (@WhrOffnsHppns)

If there is a basketball equivalent of the “face wash” — that moment just after the whistle during a goalmouth scrum when a player surreptitiously thrusts the wet, leathery, sweaty, odious-smelling palm of his glove into the face of an opponent, Beverley will be the man to bring it to prominence. Pat has a glorious ability to push just up to the limit of fair play, dip a toe over the line, and come right back. And much like the Claude Lemieuxs of yesteryear, Beverley leaves no doubt that it’s not an accident; he’s trying to push the limits, which somehow makes the whole thing more infuriating for the opposition. It’s not entirely clear whether this heel act actually helps or hinders his team, but it has a way of instantly raising the temperature of a game, turning it into #LeaguePassAlert viewing.