What Happened to Michael Beasley?

There's usually a significant drop-off between the projected number one and two overall picks in the NBA drafts:


2011: Kyrie Irving, Derrick Williams
2010: John Wall, Evan Turner
2009: Blake Griffin, Hasheem Thabeet
2008: Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley

Rose, Griffin and Wall have all been awarded max-contracts, and Irving will soon get his max-deal too. They are all franchise players, three of the four won Rookie of the Year, and one already boasts an MVP award. 

In Williams first two seasons, he averaged 10.5 points per game on .423 field goal percentage. Turner has also underperformed in his three years in the league, averaging 10.1 points per game on .428 field goal shooting. Hasheem Thabeet is already a benchwarmer.

Then there's Michael Beasley. 

Leading up to the 2008 NBA Draft, there was constant debate over who should be the number one overall pick: Rose or Beasley, Beasley or Rose. 

Obviously, the Bulls made the right choice.

But that doesn't mean Beasley had a poor rookie year like his fellow second overall pick contemporaries. He averaged 13.9 PPG, .472 FG% and .407 3P%, his best shooting percentages in his five year career. At 6 ft. 10 in., the Kansas State product showed flashes of pure brilliance for the Miami Heat: a unique skill set of ball-handling, post-moves and the ability to shoot from anywhere. But then they traded him away to make room for Lebron James and company and the rest is history. 

Beasley's off-court issues always overshadowed his play in the league. In fact, there are so many we can make a timeline:

September 3rd, 2008: Kicked out of Rookie Transition Program for smoking weed.
August 24th, 2009: Checked into rehab after posting a picture of himself with weed in the background on Twitter.
June 26th, 2011: Fined and ticketed for speeding and possession of....weed.
August 4th, 2011: Shoved a fan in the face.
August 6th, 2013: Arrested for weed possession. 

If you're not keeping count, four out of the five mishaps were weed related. Insane, immature, ridiculous and stupid are all suitable words to describe Mr. Beasley. He might be the first person in the history of the world addicted to marijuana. Or he has the worst self-control in the world. Either way, neither of those are good qualities to have, especially in a league that demands consistent hard work day-in and day-out. Come on, Beas.

I digress.

Not only do his off-court issues overshadow him, but the emergence of the 2008 draft class also makes his career all the more underwhelming. Rose, Russell Westbrook (4th pick), and Kevin Love (5th) are superstars. Brook Lopez (10th) and Roy Hibbert (17th) are all-stars; followed by quality players like O.J. Mayo (3rd), Danilo Gallinari (6th), Eric Gordon (7th), Javale McGee (18th), Ryan Anderson (21st), Serge Ibaka (24th), Nicolas Batum (25th) and George Hill (26th), who all have had more productive careers then Beasley and make more money than him. 

Even second rounders Nikola Pekovic (31st), DeAndre Jordan (35th), Omer Asik (36th) and Goran Dragic (45th!) have all arguably played better, as well as make more money (Soon, Pek, I promise). 

That many players aren't supposed to be better than the second overall pick, even if it's one of the most talented drafts in NBA history. Beasley should be doing better, especially since he was arguably more talented and more skilled than Rose entering the draft. 

So what happened?

How did Rose (who also didn't have the best track record entering the league after cheating on his SAT and getting his records swiped away from his championship runner-up Memphis Tigers squad) end up as the youngest MVP in league history, while Beasley virtually stopped improving?

Weed, obviously. Work-ethic. Okay, you can even blame the Minnesota Timberwolves. But the Miami Heat are a quality organization; one that actually cared about him and his growth, one that gave him a legitimate shot to be a leading contributor before he was shipped to the nightmare named David Kahn.

Beasley can thank ex-Suns general manager, Lance Blanks, (another Kahn-like idiot) for giving him a second chance with an $18 million, three year contract. But Beasley responded posting career lows in PPG, FG% and RPG. 

Simply put, Michael Beasley doesn't care. 

But the burning question is, will he, one day?

For Christ's sake Beasley grew up with Kevin Durant! I just don't understand. He's just as talented as Durant (yeah, I said it), AND he can play with his back to the basket. There are no excuses for his lack of improvement because he should be tearing it up on the all-star team with his buddies Rose and Durant. 

Just for extra, extra reiteration of Beasley's undeniable talent, let's compare his and Rose's single-college year statistics:

College	Year	GP	GS	MIN	SPG	BPG	RPG	APG	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%
Memphis	2007–08	40	40	29.5	1.2	0.4	4.5	4.7	14.9	.477	.712	.337

College	Year	GP	GS	MIN	SPG	BPG	RPG	APG	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%
Kansas St	2007–08	33	33	31.5	1.3	1.6	12.4	1.2	26.2	.532	.774	.379

Beasley kills Rose in every stat except assists, which should be expected since Rose is a point guard. This statistical comparison really is mind-boggling, especially in PPG and the shooting percentages. 

Now I'm just getting sad.

Currently on the bottom-feeding Phoenix Suns (who finally have a good general manager again), Beasley will probably be on the trading block all season unless he stops smoking weed plays better.

This article certainly proves Beasley's talent, but we all knew it was there all-along anyway. I'm not asking him to be on a Derrick Rose-level, competing for MVPs and championships, but at least get up there with his draft class peers. 

I would love to end this article saying 'I believe in you, Beasley!' 

But honestly, I don't know if I do anymore. 

He has two years left on his contract to prove himself, but we could be seeing him stuck on the sidelines with fellow lazy-man Hasheem Thabeet if he doesn't step it up. On the Suns or not, Beasley might not have many more chances for success if he doesn't pull it together quickly. 

The talent is there, but everything else isn't.