Thank you for reading The Dope.
We’ll tread carefully here, as there is more unknown than known so far in the NBA’s latest black eye involving gambling and one of its players. But the gist of it is this:
—ESPN reported late Sunday that Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley is being investigated by federal authorities on allegations of gambling.
—The investigation centers around the 2023-24 season, when Beasley was playing for the Milwaukee Bucks, and it involves game bets and prop bets.
—Beasley has not been charged with anything as yet.
—Turns out Beasley was experiencing financial issues right around the same time that some unusual betting activity was observed, including bets related to his own statistics in particular games.
—It’s bad. It’s so, so bad. “Crooked league” bad, a slur that the NBA has tried to fight off several times over the past couple of decades.