The NBA faces another gambling scandal, as federal authorities have launched an investigation into Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley, ESPN reported on Sunday.
The report says Beasley is accused of betting on games during the 2023-24 season, when he played for the Milwaukee Bucks. It adds that “at least one prominent U.S. sportsbook” detected unusual betting activity on Beasley’s statistics.
In particular, the article cites a 2024 game between the Bucks and the Portland Trail Blazers, where the odds on Beasley grabbing under 2.5 rebounds shortened from +120 to -250 before the game after a significant level of betting activity. These bets did not cash, as Beasley ultimately recorded six rebounds.
Beasley’s attorney Steve Haney noted that the guard has not been charged with any crime at this point.
“An investigation is not a charge,” Haney told ESPN. “Malik is afforded the same right of the presumption of innocence as anyone else under the U.S. Constitution. As of now he has not been charged with anything.”
Beasley — whose contract expired at the end of the season — averaged 16.3 points per game last year as the Pistons made the playoffs. He had been in talks with the Pistons about a new three-year, $42 million contract, but the investigation has put those talks on hold.
Other NBA betting controversies
The investigation is far from the first gambling scandal to hit the NBA.
Former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter was banned from the league for life last year, after a league investigation found he “violated league rules by disclosing confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and betting on NBA games.” He was ultimately charged with, and pled guilty to, conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Federal prosecutors also launched an investigation into Terry Rozier this year, over unusual betting activity related to a 2023 game. So far he has not been charged with a crime or suspended.
Other major U.S. sports leagues have had their own issues with players and other insiders gambling. In 2022, the NFL suspended wide receiver Calvin Ridley for betting on games during the 2021 season. The following year, 10 NFL players were suspended for violating gambling rules.
In 2023, Shane Pinto of the NHL’s Ottawa Senators was suspended for 41 games for violating league gambling rules. The Ottawa Sun reported that he had an online gambling account in the U.S. that was flagged by an NHL integrity protection partner “because of unusual activity.”
In June of last year, Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter Ippei Mizuhara pled guilty to stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani to place wagers with Matt Bowyer, a Southern California-based illegal bookmaker. That same month, San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano received a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for betting on games.
