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Tim BontempsESPN
Malik Beasley, who is waiting for the Minnesota Timberwolves, has been suspended for 12 games without pay following the fact that he pleaded guilty to threats of violence due to an incident in September, the NBA said on Thursday.
“As an organization, we support the NBA’s decision today,” Gersson Rosas, president of basketball operations, Timberwolves, said in a statement shortly after the suspension was announced. “As we work with Malik to promote his development as a player and person, we look forward to seeing his growth.”
Beasley’s suspension begins Saturday, when the Timberwolves are in Washington to play the Wizards. He will be able to return to court on March 27, when Minnesota hosts the Houston Rockets.
The suspension will cost the guard $ 1.1 million.
Beasley agreed earlier this month to a plea deal with prosecutors that resulted in drug charges being dropped against him in exchange for the guilty plea. As a result, Beasley was sentenced to 120 days in prison, which can be locked up either in the country’s workhouse or in the home, after the NBA season ended in mid-May.
“We are very pleased with this outcome that will enable Malik to continue to become a better person and make better choices,” Beasley’s attorney Steven Haney said in a statement released by ESPN’s Mark Schlabach. received after the plea was agreed earlier this month. .
In a statement Schlabach received last September, the Plymouth Police Department said officers were called to Beasley’s residence after a reported gun violation. The persons who reported told officers that they had stopped their car in front of the house, and a ‘suspect walked to their vehicle, tapped on the vehicle window, aimed a gun at them and advised them to leave the property to climb.
“While the victims were driving away, the suspect was spotted holding the gun to his shoulder and pointing it at their vehicle,” the police statement read.
Officers set up a perimeter to locate the individual and noticed a strong odor of marijuana, according to the statement. A vehicle tried to leave the property and was stopped by police. Three people in the car were detained and later released. A man who identified himself as the homeowner was outside and shouted at officers.
Officers obtained a warrant for the property and located drugs and numerous guns, one of which was confirmed stolen.
Beasley was traded to Minnesota last February and signed a $ 60 million four-year deal with the Timberwolves during the off-season. He was one of the few highlights of an otherwise terrible season for Minnesota, averaging 20.5 points per game and 40% off the three-point series.
The Timberwolves are the league’s worst 7-26 and have lost six games in a row, as well as ten of their last 11 games. They have not won two games in a row since the opening two games of the season. The team fired coach Ryan Saunders after the loss of the New York Knicks on Sunday night, and Chris Finch – who worked for the Toronto Raptors as an assistant coach – appointed Saunders as a permanent replacement.
Information about ESPN’s Bobby Marks was used in this report.