Who Is Malik Beasley? | Biography
Malik Beasley is an American professional basketball guard known for high-volume three-point shooting and nine seasons in the NBA. His biography includes Florida State, six NBA teams, and a 2026 spell in Puerto Rico. He produced a franchise-record shooting season for the Detroit Pistons in 2024–25. However, a federal sports-betting case later interrupted that professional momentum. The prosecution became central to his public profile during the following year.
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Born on November 26, 1996, Beasley grew up in Georgia in a family connected with acting and basketball. His parents, Michael and Deena, supported his development through high school and college. He played at St. Francis before joining Florida State for the 2015–16 season. After one college season, he entered the NBA draft. The Denver Nuggets selected him with the nineteenth overall pick in June 2016.
Beasley developed in Denver before moving to the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2020. Later stops included the Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers, and Milwaukee Bucks. In Detroit, he made 319 three-pointers during the 2024–25 regular season and finished second in Sixth Man voting. He subsequently played for the Cangrejeros de Santurce in Puerto Rico. That spell ended in May 2026, before federal prosecutors announced an indictment the following month.
As of October 28, 2026, Beasley is 29 and has not returned to an NBA roster since Detroit. On October 27, his lawyer said he had agreed to plead guilty in the federal betting case. A hearing was scheduled for December 9, 2026. The announcement was not yet an entered plea or sentence. His personal life also includes two children with Montana Yao, who sought legal separation in 2025.
Malik Beasley Age | How Old Is Malik Beasley?
Malik Beasley is 29 years old as of October 28, 2026. He was born on November 26, 1996, in Georgia. His thirtieth birthday will occur on November 26, 2026. Therefore, he remains twenty-nine on this article’s publication date.
Malik Beasley Height | How Tall Is Malik Beasley?
Beasley’s NBA profile lists him at 6 feet 4 inches, or 193 centimeters. Florida State listed him taller during college. For his professional biography, the NBA measurement provides the relevant current roster standard. Different historical listings should not be averaged into an invented measurement.
Malik Beasley Ethnicity
Beasley comes from the African American Beasley family, whose history includes acting and athletics in Omaha and Atlanta. Reliable family reporting documents those connections. A more detailed ancestry breakdown is not established here.
Malik Beasley Education
Beasley attended St. Francis School in Georgia before studying at Florida State University. He played one season for the Seminoles in 2015–16 under coach Leonard Hamilton. His freshman honors included selection to the All-ACC Freshman Team. Afterward, he entered the 2016 NBA draft instead of completing four collegiate seasons. Florida State later reported that he had enrolled in classes while playing professionally. However, the reviewed university records do not establish a completed degree. His attendance, basketball achievements, and subsequent coursework should remain distinct from graduation. The university’s reference to continuing education confirms an academic effort without supplying an earned qualification.
Malik Beasley Wife | Marriage and Separation From Montana Yao
Beasley married Montana Yao on March 5, 2020. Yao works as a model and online personality. The couple had already welcomed their son before the wedding and later had a daughter. Their relationship experienced a public separation after Beasley appeared with Larsa Pippen in late 2020. Yao filed for divorce during that period, but the couple subsequently reconciled. In March 2025, she sought legal separation again, citing irreconcilable differences in court documents reviewed by entertainment reporters. A completed final divorce is not established by the records used here. Consequently, the confirmed account is a marriage followed by reported separation proceedings, rather than a verified remarriage or new spouse.
Malik Beasley Children
Beasley and Yao have two publicly documented children: Makai and Mia. Their son, Makai, was born in March 2019. Their daughter, Mia, arrived in November 2022. Public reporting about their parents’ relationship does not establish private custody arrangements or the children’s daily circumstances.
Malik Beasley Family | Parents, Siblings, and Grandfather
Beasley’s parents are Michael and Deena Beasley, both of whom have worked in entertainment. His father also played professional basketball overseas before Malik’s birth, including in Latin America and Puerto Rico. His sister, Micah, has pursued acting. His maternal half-brother, Darius Brandenburg, works as a musician. Additionally, his grandfather was John Beasley, the film and television actor associated with projects including Rudy and Everwood. Malik grew up around audition preparation, film sets, and athletic training. In interviews, his parents described helping him manage the transition into professional basketball. His father is a different person from the NBA player Michael Beasley.
Malik Beasley Career | Denver to Detroit
Beasley entered the NBA as Denver’s nineteenth overall pick in 2016. His first seasons involved developing behind established teammates before he secured a larger rotation role. By 2018–19, he averaged double figures for the Nuggets and contributed to their playoff team. A February 2020 trade moved him to Minnesota, where he received greater scoring responsibility.
Subsequently, Minnesota traded him to Utah in 2022 as part of the Rudy Gobert transaction. A 2023 deadline deal sent him to the Lakers. He then spent 2023–24 with Milwaukee before signing with Detroit. Shooting remained his primary offensive contribution across those NBA stops. His Pistons season brought career-best three-point production and Sixth Man recognition. After leaving the NBA, he briefly played in Puerto Rico during 2026. The betting investigation and subsequent federal charges accompanied that later period of professional uncertainty.
Malik Beasley Teams | Professional Timeline
Beasley represented six NBA franchises between 2016 and 2025, followed by a Puerto Rican club. His professional sequence was:
- Denver Nuggets, 2016–2020: first NBA team and early development.
- Minnesota Timberwolves, 2020–2022: expanded scoring role and a multiyear contract.
- Utah Jazz, 2022–2023: arrived in the Rudy Gobert trade.
- Los Angeles Lakers, 2023: joined during the February trade deadline.
- Milwaukee Bucks, 2023–2024: played alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.
- Detroit Pistons, 2024–2025: set a franchise three-point record.
- Cangrejeros de Santurce, 2026: played in Puerto Rico’s Baloncesto Superior Nacional.
Detroit remains his last NBA team. The Cangrejeros were a separate professional engagement, rather than an NBA assignment or affiliated developmental placement.
Malik Beasley Pistons | Three-Point Record in 2024–25
Beasley made 319 three-pointers for Detroit in 2024–25, establishing a Pistons single-season record. He played all 82 regular-season games, averaging 16.3 points and shooting 41.6 percent from three-point range. His total placed him second in the league behind Anthony Edwards. He also became one of the small group of NBA players to reach 300 threes in a season.
That production came primarily in a reserve role: he started eighteen games and came off the bench in sixty-four. His shooting gave Detroit another scoring option around Cade Cunningham. The team reached the playoffs, where it faced the New York Knicks. His record therefore combined substantial shooting volume with availability throughout the regular season. Those statistics describe 2024–25, not current-season performance.
Malik Beasley Awards | Sixth Man Voting and College Honors
Beasley finished second in the 2025 NBA Sixth Man of the Year voting. Boston’s Payton Pritchard won the award. A runner-up finish is a notable result, but it should not appear as an award victory in his biography. His earlier honors included the 2016 All-ACC Freshman Team at Florida State. He shared that distinction with teammate Dwayne Bacon, marking a significant season for the program’s freshman class. These achievements came at different competitive levels and stages of his development.
Malik Beasley Puerto Rico | Cangrejeros de Santurce in 2026
Beasley played for the Cangrejeros de Santurce in Puerto Rico during 2026. The club competed in Baloncesto Superior Nacional, commonly called the BSN. The opportunity followed his final NBA season with Detroit. However, the engagement ended during May as the Cangrejeros struggled early in their season. Local reporting on May 11, 2026, documented his departure alongside a change involving coach Nelson Colón. Beasley had averaged approximately 18.4 points per game during the spell. This stop belongs in his professional timeline, even though it did not constitute an NBA return. The reviewed reporting does not establish a later club contract before this biography’s publication date.
Malik Beasley Gambling Case | Charges and Planned Plea
Federal prosecutors announced charges against Beasley and five others on June 29, 2026. The Eastern District of New York alleged a scheme involving payments and manipulated player statistics during his Milwaukee season. The charges included sports bribery, wire-fraud conspiracy, honest-services wire-fraud conspiracy, and money-laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors alleged that reduced gambling debts served as a form of payment.
Beasley initially pleaded not guilty. On October 27, 2026, attorney Steve Haney said an agreement had been reached for a guilty plea. Reporting identified December 9 as the scheduled hearing. As of October 28, that hearing had not occurred. The announced agreement therefore should not be described as an entered guilty plea, a final conviction, or a sentence. The prosecution’s allegations remain attributable to prosecutors until resolved through the applicable court proceedings.
Malik Beasley Previous Legal Case | Minnesota Suspension
Beasley previously pleaded guilty in a separate Minnesota threats-of-violence case arising from a September 2020 incident. In February 2021, the NBA announced a twelve-game suspension without pay because of that plea. The league’s statement identified the offense and its connection with the disciplinary decision. This earlier case had a different factual basis from the later federal betting prosecution. It should neither be omitted from a relevant legal history nor used to imply guilt on unrelated charges. His subsequent return to basketball followed that earlier period of discipline.
Malik Beasley Salary | Detroit Contract and Current Earnings
Beasley’s 2024–25 Detroit contract was reported at approximately $6 million for one season. Contemporary reporting initially described the agreement as worth more than $6 million. That historical figure concerns his last NBA contract, not a verified salary for 2026. His earlier Minnesota agreement also represented a multiyear basketball contract. Meanwhile, no reliable public figure establishes his later Puerto Rican compensation or total current annual earnings. Proposed NBA offers that never became signed contracts should not be included as money he actually earned.
Malik Beasley Net Worth 2026
Beasley’s net worth is not reliably established by public financial records. Nearly $60 million in reported gross NBA earnings does not equal current wealth. Taxes, expenses, liabilities, and contractual circumstances affect the money retained. Moreover, prosecutors’ allegations about gambling losses are case claims, not an audited personal balance sheet. Unsupported wealth totals are omitted.
Biography Summary
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Public name | Malik Beasley |
| Profession | American professional basketball guard |
| Birth date | November 26, 1996 |
| Age | 29 as of October 28, 2026 |
| Birthplace and upbringing | Georgia, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Family background | African American acting and athletic family |
| Height | NBA listing: 6 feet 4 inches, 193 centimeters |
| School | St. Francis School in Georgia |
| College | Florida State University, 2015–16 basketball season |
| Degree | Completion not confirmed; later coursework publicly documented |
| Parents | Michael and Deena Beasley |
| Siblings | Micah Beasley; maternal half-brother Darius Brandenburg |
| Grandfather | Actor John Beasley |
| Marriage | Montana Yao; married March 5, 2020 |
| Relationship development | Yao sought legal separation in March 2025 |
| Children | Makai, born in 2019, and Mia, born in 2022 |
| NBA draft | Denver Nuggets, nineteenth overall pick, 2016 |
| NBA teams | Denver, Minnesota, Utah, Lakers, Milwaukee, and Detroit |
| Last professional club reported | Cangrejeros de Santurce; departed in May 2026 |
| Detroit achievement | Franchise-record 319 three-pointers in 2024–25 |
| Award result | Second in 2025 Sixth Man of the Year voting |
| Federal case | Planned guilty plea announced; hearing scheduled for December 9, 2026 |
| Financial information | Approximately $6 million Detroit contract; current net worth unverified |




