One notable absence from the FBI’s gambling-related arrests Thursday: Malik Beasley, the ex-Pistons wing who was a subject of a gambling investigation first reported in June by ESPN.
According to Beasley’s lawyer Steve Haney, the nine-year NBA veteran did not cooperate in two cases that led to the arrests of Heat guard Terry Rozier, Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, and ex-NBA player Damon Jones. Rozier and Jones were arrested for their alleged involvement in an NBA gambling scheme, while Billups was charged in a separate case involving rigged poker games.
“I want to make this perfectly clear any avoidance Malik Beasley has in connection with today’s developments in the federal gambling arrests has no relationship whatsoever to any alleged or accused cooperation or information provided to the eastern district in New York,” Beasley’s lawyer Steve Haney said in a statement to The Detroit News.
Haney added that his client “has not and will not cooperate with any pending federal investigations.”
In August, less than two months after Beasley was said to be under federal investigation, ESPN reported that the 28-year-old was reportedly no longer a “target.” However, Front Office Sports reported that Beasley could still be charged with a crime, and Haney said there is still a level of concern his client could be indicted following Thursday’s arrests.
“To say there is no concern would be naive,” Haney said Thursday. “But at this time, Malik is, obviously, in a better place than, unfortunately, the others.”
Beasley has, however, been seemingly cleared of an NBA investigation. According to sports journalist Pablo Torre, the league “didn’t find anything,” only that Beasley had placed bets on other sports. That hasn’t changed Beasley’s employment status as the NBA veteran has still yet to sign a new contract to return to the league.
The NBA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Following a breakout season when he finished second in the NBA in three-pointers made, he was reportedly close to signing a three-year, $42 million deal to return to Detroit. The negotiations fell through after news of the gambling investigation days before the opening of NBA free agency.
The Pistons ultimately signed sharpshooter Duncan Robinson on a three-year, $48 million deal.
