Malik Beasley’s NBA future is suddenly back in limbo, and this time the stakes are far bigger than basketball.
Federal prosecutors in New York have indicted the free agent sharpshooter on sports gambling charges, according to Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Former NBA big man Ed Davis was also indicted, Vorkunov reported.
Beasley’s attorney, Steve Haney, told Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press that his client is facing sports betting, money laundering, and wire fraud charges and that they “look forward to defending all charges.”
According to the allegations laid out by prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Beasley and Davis became close when they were teammates on the 2020/21 Timberwolves and later worked together to manipulate Beasley’s play in four different NBA games for betting purposes while Beasley was with the Bucks during the 2023/24 season.
Prosecutors say Beasley was dealing with million dollars in gambling losses and joined the scheme with Davis and three other people, including former NBA agent Paolo Zamorano, in an effort to dig out from that debt.
One text message, allegedly sent by Davis about a month before the first targeted game, captured the mindset prosecutors say was behind the operation. “Only way you can beat Vegas is sports betting,” Davis allegedly wrote to Beasley. “Everything else they got the edge.”
The first game in question was Bucks/Cavaliers on January 26, 2024. Prosecutors also identified Bucks/Hornets on February 27, Bucks/Clippers on March 10, and Bucks/Nets on March 21 as games the group allegedly targeted with Beasley-related prop bets.
Beasley took only two field goal attempts and scored three points against Cleveland, and investigators say the group wagered thousands of dollars on that contest.
The alleged betting pattern continued in the Clippers game, where the group reportedly played the over on Beasley’s rebounds at 3.5. Beasley got his fourth rebound in the final seconds, and the group celebrated. But the plan didn’t hold together in the Nets game, where the group allegedly bet the under on his rebounds and Beasley finished with six boards.
The indictment lands after a turbulent stretch for Beasley, who was one of the league’s most dangerous three-point shooters and finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting in 2024/25. He had been positioned for a lucrative multiyear deal with the Pistons in free agency, but those talks stopped once reports surfaced that federal investigators and the NBA were looking into a possible link to illegal betting activity.
Beasley, 29, later signed earlier this year with Cangrejeros de Santurce, the Puerto Rican team owned by Bad Bunny, while he waits for clarity on what comes next in the NBA.
NBA spokesperson Mike Bass issued a statement to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press after the indictment became public.
“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.”
Beasley and Davis are now the fourth and fifth former NBA players indicted by federal prosecutors in the ongoing illegal sports gambling probe, joining Terry Rozier, Jontay Porter, and Damon Jones. Porter was permanently banned from the NBA after a league investigation found that he had disclosed confidential information to bettors. The other cases remain ongoing.
In Other News...
Wild Just Made A Familiar Minnesota Hockey Move With Bigger Stakes
The Iowa Wild are turning to a familiar face with deep roots in Minnesota hockey, giving the organization a coach who knows the state, the league and the developmental grind that comes with running an AHL team. The move was announced by Wild president Bill Guerin and Iowa Wild general manager Matt Hendricks, a pairing that shows how much internal confidence there is in the hire and how closely the parent club is tied to what happens in Des Moines.
Stu Bickel brings a coaching resume built over five seasons as an AHL assistant, along with stops at the University of Minnesota and with the Minnesota Magicians, so this is not a leap into the unknown. He also has the kind of playing background that tends to carry weight in these rooms, with NHL experience and a past connection to the Wild organization itself, which makes this feel like more than just a standard affiliate hire as Iowa keeps feeding the pipeline for Minnesota. [Read more 🡒]
Bill Guerin Just Made Wild Fans Sweat About Quinn Hughes
Quinn Hughes is now in the final year of his current deal, and Bill Guerin has already started to ease Wild fans into the idea that this is not necessarily a one-day, July 1 kind of process. The Minnesota general manager said a new extension may not get announced immediately, but the expectation is that something should come together before training camp, which at least gives the team some breathing room as it heads into a busy summer.
Still, the calendar matters here because the real stress point would be if Hughes is sitting there without a new contract once camp opens. Minnesota is juggling plenty at the same time, from potential free-agent additions and draft moves to its pursuit of Dylan Larkin, but Hughes remains the name that will define how loud this offseason feels around the Wild. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Rumors Hint At A Franchise Changing Decision In Net
The goaltending market has been one of the leagues busier storylines, and Buffalo keeps showing up in the middle of it. Edmonton seriously explored a move for Devon Levi before it fell through, while the Sabres have also been linked to a potential swap with Winnipeg around Connor Hellebuyck, a sign that teams are still trying to reshape the position before the next round of roster decisions really sets in.
For Minnesota, the ripple effect is harder to ignore because of the unsettled feeling around its own summer plans. Mats Zuccarello is said to be pretty ticked about how things have unfolded and plans to test free agency, which only adds to the sense that the Wild are navigating a tricky stretch with veteran pieces and cap decisions hanging over the roster. Elsewhere around the league, the trade and signing market keeps moving, but the bigger question for Minnesota is how much more movement it can afford before its own situation turns from complicated to costly. [Read more 🡒]