Malik Beasley has been indicted by federal prosecutors in New York on sports gambling charges, with former NBA center Ed Davis also named in the case, according to reporting from The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov.
Beasley’s attorney, Steve Haney, said his client is facing sports betting, money laundering and wire fraud charges and that they “look forward to defending all charges.”
The indictment comes out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, which alleges Beasley and Davis grew close when they were teammates on the 2020/21 Timberwolves and later worked together to manipulate Beasley’s play in four NBA games for betting purposes while Beasley was with the Bucks during the 2023/24 season.
Prosecutors say Beasley had millions in gambling losses and joined the scheme with Davis and three other people, including former NBA agent Paolo Zamorano, in an effort to cover that debt.
One alleged text message from Davis to Beasley, sent about a month before the first targeted game, read: “Only way you can beat Vegas is sports betting,” Davis allegedly told Beasley in a text message about a month before the first game in question, a Bucks/Cavaliers matchup on January 26, 2024. “Everything else they got the edge.”
The games identified by prosecutors were January 26 against the Cavaliers, February 27 against the Hornets, March 10 against the Clippers and March 21 against the Nets. In the Jan. 26 game, Beasley took just two shots and scored three points, and investigators say the group wagered thousands of dollars tied to that outing.
According to Vorkunov’s reporting, the group bet the “over” on Beasley’s rebounds at 3.5 for the Clippers game and celebrated when he got his fourth rebound in the final seconds. The plan allegedly backfired in the Nets game, when they bet the “under” on his rebounds and Beasley finished with six.
Beasley, a high-volume three-point threat, finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting in 2024/25 and had been in line for a major multiyear deal with the Pistons before contract talks stopped once federal investigators and the NBA began looking into a possible link to illegal betting activity. He later signed with Cangrejeros de Santurce, the Puerto Rican team owned by Bad Bunny, while his NBA future remains unresolved.
The case adds Beasley and Davis to a list of former NBA players already indicted in the broader federal gambling probe, alongside Terry Rozier, Jontay Porter and Damon Jones. Porter was permanently banned from the NBA after a league investigation found he had shared confidential information with bettors. The other cases are still active.
NBA spokesperson Mike Bass said the league is reviewing the indictment and will continue to cooperate with authorities.
“We are in the process of reviewing the federal indictment unsealed today involving Malik Beasley and Ed Davis. Beasley last played in the NBA during the 2024/25 season and Davis last played in the league during the 2021/22 season.
We will continue to investigate this matter and cooperate with the relevant authorities. We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.”
In Other News...
Illinois Just Landed A Big Recruiting Moment With Elite In-State Guard
Illinois is set to get another look at one of its most important in-state basketball targets, with composite five-star guard Brady Pettigrew planning an unofficial visit to campus. The Class of 2028 prospect has become a major name in the national recruiting conversation, and the Illini have stayed firmly in the mix as his profile has grown. He has already been on campus multiple times, a sign that this is not a fresh relationship but one the staff has been building for a while.
Pettigrews offer list now stretches past 25 Division I programs, with power-conference interest coming from Ohio State, Auburn, Villanova and Florida State, among others. For Illinois, the appeal is obvious: landing a top in-state guard early would be a strong statement about its recruiting reach and its ability to hold homegrown talent. The next steps in Pettigrews timeline could matter just as much as the visit itself, which is why this trip carries extra weight for the Illini. [Read more 🡒]
Keaton Wagler Is Facing The Same Disrespect All Over Again
Keaton Wagler entered the league with the kind of draft pedigree that usually brings instant respect, going No. 5 overall and landing in a spot where the expectations are already heavy. Still, DraftKings has him only seventh in the NBA Rookie of the Year odds at +2500, a ranking that says as much about how crowded the award race looks as it does about how little room there is for a rookie to stand out before a single game changes the conversation.
For Illinois fans, the interesting part is the fit with the Clippers, where opportunity can matter almost as much as reputation. Wagler is in a situation that could open up quickly, and the path ahead becomes even more intriguing if the roster around him shifts in the way people around the league are already talking about, leaving him with a chance to climb a board that has already pushed him behind six other rookies. [Read more 🡒]
David Mirkovic Is Becoming The Illini Piece Everything Could Hinge On
David Mirkovics first season at Illinois gave the Illini exactly the sort of frontcourt connector they can build around. He scored inside and out, helped on the glass and even flashed enough playmaking to make the offense less predictable, all while looking like a freshman who could already handle a bigger role than his age suggested.
What makes the storyline so interesting is how much more there still might be there. Illinois got a versatile contributor right away, but the broader conversation around the roster is heading toward which player becomes the most indispensable piece as the next few seasons unfold, and Mirkovic is making a strong case to be at the center of it. [Read more 🡒]