Former Miami Heat forward Michael Beasley was suspended on Thursday by the NBA for violating the league’s anti-drug policy. While no details were offered regarding the particular drug used by Beasley, the suspension will be for five games.
At present, the 30-year-old Beasley is a free agent after having started in two of the 26 games he played in for the Los Angeles Lakers last season. In those contests, he averaged 7.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game, numbers that were lower than his respective career averages of 12.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists for each game.
The 6-foot-10 Beasley began his career as the second overall pick by the Heat in the 2008 NBA Draft. During his second season with the team, he entered the starting lineup, but was dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves in July 2010. That deal was made to create salary space for the Heat after they signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh as free agents.
Spending two seasons with the Timberwolves, he then signed a three-year contract with the Phoenix Suns. However, following a series of off-the-court incidents, the Suns waived him, a move that allowed the Heat to sign him.
In his first season back in Miami, Beasley was part of the team’s fourth straight trip to the NBA Finals, in which they came up short to the San Antonio Spurs.