A storm may be brewing around one of the NBA’s most prominent sharpshooters.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley is under investigation by the U.S. District Attorney’s office for alleged involvement in gambling activity related to NBA games and player prop bets.
The report, which broke late Sunday evening, marks a serious and potentially career-defining moment for the 27-year-old guard and sends tremors through a league still reeling from the Jontay Porter scandal.
At this stage, Beasley has not been formally charged. His attorney, Steve Haney, was quick to urge caution in interpreting the developments.
“An investigation is not a charge. 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.”
Nevertheless, the implications are significant.
Beasley, who just completed a strong season with the Detroit Pistons, was in advanced discussions on a three-year, $42 million contract extension to remain with the franchise. According to sources close to the team, those negotiations have now been paused indefinitely as the organization awaits further clarity from both the legal process and the NBA’s own internal investigation.
Beasley’s on-court value is not in question. In 2024–25, he averaged 16.3 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game while shooting a blistering 41.6% from beyond the arc, placing him among the league’s top perimeter threats.
For a young Pistons squad desperate for shooting and veteran presence, his return was viewed as a key building block. That plan now hangs in limbo.
This latest scandal comes just months after the NBA handed down a lifetime ban to former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter, who was found guilty of multiple gambling-related violations.
Porter’s actions included sharing confidential information with bettors, manipulating his own in-game performance for wagering purposes, and placing bets on NBA contests, a trifecta of offenses that earned him the league’s most severe punishment in decades.
The Porter case put the league on high alert, especially as legalized sports betting continues to spread across the United States. The NBA has repeatedly emphasized its zero-tolerance policy toward any gambling activity involving its players.
If Beasley is found to have engaged in any similar conduct, he could face similarly steep consequences, including suspension, expulsion from the league, or legal action.
For now, Beasley remains a free agent, and his future in the NBA is murky.
Whether Beasley’s name is eventually cleared or further implicated, one thing is certain: the NBA’s relationship with sports betting is entering its most complicated chapter yet, and the stakes have never been higher.
