Former NBA star Malik Beasley negotiating plea deal over gambling charges

Former NBA player Malik Beasley is negotiating a plea agreement with the Department of Justice after initially pleading not guilty to charges that he altered his play in certain games in 2024 to enrich sports bettors and ease his own debts, his attorney said Saturday.

In July, Beasley entered a not guilty plea in New York federal court. He was among the latest big names caught up in a sweeping federal gambling investigation .

Beasley's attorney, Steve Haney, told The Associated Press in a text message that they were negotiating an agreement with the government “with an expected direction in the coming days.”

Beasley, 29, and sports agent Paolo Zamorano, who has also pleaded not guilty, were among six people charged in an indictment unsealed this summer detailing a gambling scandal that has involved more than three dozen arrests.

Zamorano, 39, formerly represented another co-defendant, ex-NBA player Ed Davis, who had lent money to Beasley and is accused of acting as his “gatekeeper” in the alleged scheme.

Beasley is accused of fixing or trying to fix his performance in at least four games while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks in 2024 by under or overperforming bookmakers’ expectations. In exchange, the indictment said, the bettors bribed Beasley — and his debts to Davis were reduced or eliminated.

“Only way you can beat Vegas is sports betting,” Davis told Beasley in a Jan. 26, 2024, text message, according to the indictment. “Everything else they got the edge.”

Beasley borrowed money from Davis, a former teammate, after racking up millions of dollars in gambling losses. His widely reported financial problems include disputes with a Detroit landlord, a Milwaukee barber and a Minnesota dentist. A 2025 lawsuit from a sports marketing agency resulted in a $1 million default judgment against him.

Beasley has been out of the NBA since playing with the Detroit Pistons in 2024-25 on a one-year, $6 million contract. He averaged 16 points per game and scored 20 in his last game, a playoff loss to the New York Knicks. He is one of five players in NBA history with more than 300 three-pointers in a season. ___

AP Sports Writer Larry Lage contributed to this report from Ann Arbor, Michigan.