Former First-Round Pick Signs to the Pistons

During the 2023 offseason, former first-round pick Malik Beasley signed a veteran minimum deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. Before the season started, Milwaukee was a sure favorite to win the 2024 NBA Finals. They finished the regular season as the third seed in the Eastern Conference and went on to face their division rivals, the Indiana Pacers during the first round. The Bucks dealt with numerous injuries to their key star players throughout this series, which they ultimately lost in six games. After the season ended, Beasley became a free agent, and today it was just reported he signed with the Detroit Pistons on a one-year six million dollar deal. 

Beasley was the 19th overall pick during the 2016 NBA Draft, being selected by the Denver Nuggets. The former first-round pick played three and a half seasons in Denver before being traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a four-team deal that involved 12 players. He stayed with the T-Wolves for two and a half seasons before being traded again, this time to the Utah Jazz during the 2022 offseason. Only a couple of months later, Beasley was traded once more, now to the Los Angeles Lakers. After the Lakers declined their team option with the former first-round pick, he then decided to sign a veteran minimum deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. 

This past season in 79 games and 77 starts, the former first-round pick averaged about 11 points, four rebounds, an assist, and a steal in 30 minutes a game. During the Bucks first-round series against the Pacers, Beasley averaged nearly nine points, three rebounds, an assist, and a steal. On November 15th in a 128-112 win over the Toronto Raptors, Beasley recorded 30 points, four rebounds, and a steal. It will be interesting to see if the 27-year-old shooting guard can average around his usual 11-13 points a game with the Pistons.