FBI agents in New York have launched a wire fraud investigation of Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley related to gambling and prop bets, The Detroit News has learned.
The investigation involving one of the top NBA unrestricted free agents this offseason has been underway for about 18 months and is being overseen by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York, his lawyer, Steve Haney, told The News.
“It’s a gambling investigation involving Malik. No criminal charges have been issued. It’s nothing but an investigation and Malik is entitled to the presumption of innocence,” Haney said.
The full scope of the investigation was unclear Sunday after ESPN first disclosed the existence of the investigation.
“Any time you’ve got a gambling investigation, it is not isolated to one person, it usually involves more than one,” Haney said. “I have no evidence and there are no charges filed and the government has not given me any indication where things stand.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office iis prosecuting at least six people in a sports betting case involving ex-NBA player Jontay Porter, though it is unclear if that probe is linked to Beasley.
Porter, a former Toronto Raptors center, has pleaded guilty and was banned from the NBA for life. He admitted that he agreed to withdraw early from games, claiming illness or injury, so that those in the know could win big by betting on him to underperform expectations, the Associated Press reported earlier this year.
“Hit unders for the big numbers," Porter wrote to an alleged conspirator on Jan. 26, 2024, according to a court complaint against yet another alleged schemer, Shane Hennen. He was arrested in January at the Las Vegas airport while boarding a flight to Panama.
It is not unusual for a federal investigation, especially ones that involve search warrants, subpoenas and witness interviews, to take years, said Wade Fink, a defense lawyer based in Birmingham, Mich., who is not involved in the case.
“Federal prosecutors use wire fraud as a hook to lots of underlying crimes so just hearing the word ‘gambling’ doesn’t tell us enough,” Fink said. “But it suggests there is something more going on here - whether that is tax implications or NBA games or something else that is interesting to the federal government beyond just gambling.”
Beasley, 28, who is set to become a free agent on June 30, played an essential role in helping the Pistons' resurgence this season. He finished in second place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, averaging 16.3 points on 41.6% shooting from 3-pointers. Beasley was also one of three players who finished the regular season with at least 300 3-pointers made, joining Anthony Edwards and Stephen Curry.
The timing of the investigation being revealed on the eve of NBA free agency concerns Fink.
“As a criminal defense lawyer who deeply believes in the presumption of innocence, who knows firsthand how the government can wrongly accuse someone, it bothers me that this would be revealed on the eve of someone trying to sign a contract to benefit them and their family for a long time,” Fink said.
The 2024-25 season was Beasley’s first with the Pistons. He was one of 11 players – the only for Detroit – to appear in all 82 regular-season games.
He averaged 27.8 minutes, 43.0% on field goals, 41.6 % on 3-pointers, 67.9% on free throws, 2.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 16.3 points.
His career averages over nine NBA seasons are 23.8 minutes, 42.6% on field goals, 39.1% on 3-pointers, 76.9% on free throws, 2.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 11.7 points.
In the Pistons’ six playoff games against the New York Knicks, Beasley averaged 27.2 minutes, 37.3% on field goals, 33.9% on 3-pointers, 100% on free throws, 2.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 14.0 points.
He has played for Denver, Minnesota, Milwaukee, Utah, the Los Angeles Lakers and Detroit.
Beasley signed a one-year, $6 million contract with the Pistons as a free agent on July 11, 2024.
The negotiating period for NBA free agents begins Monday at 6 p.m. ET. Teams can officially sign free agents starting Sunday, July 6 at noon.