Court twist for Malik Beasley: Ex-NBA guard pleads not guilty in high-profile gambling scandal

Malik Beasley pleaded not guilty Wednesday to federal charges accusing him of altering his play in Milwaukee Bucks games during the 2024 season to enrich sports bettors and chip away at his own gambling debts.

The arraignment in Brooklyn federal court makes the former NBA guard the latest marquee name swept into a sprawling investigation that has already produced more than three dozen arrests across professional basketball.Beasley, 29, said little during the hearing, answering the judge's questions with "yes, your honor" while his attorney, Jason Goldman, entered the plea on his behalf. He was released on a $100,000 bond, and the case now heads toward a status conference on Aug.

6, leaving Beasley's basketball future in limbo just as the free agency period heats up around the league.

Malik Beasley pleads not guilty in high-profile gambling scandal

Malik Beasley and sports agent Paolo Zamorano were among six people charged in an indictment unsealed this week, prosecutors said. The pair are the newest defendants in a gambling sweep that has already ensnared former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, accused of conspiring with friends to help them win bets, and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups, accused of conspiring to fix high-stakes poker games.

The indictment charges Beasley, former NBA player Ed Davis, Zamorano and three others with wire fraud conspiracy, bribery in sporting contests, honest services wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors allege Beasley is accused of fixing or trying to fix his performance in at least four games while playing for the Bucks in 2024, underperforming or overperforming statistical lines that sportsbooks had set for him.

In exchange, the indictment says, the bettors bribed Beasley by reducing or eliminating debts he owed to Davis, a former teammate who had loaned him money after Beasley racked up millions of dollars in gambling losses.Text messages included in the indictment paint a detailed picture of the alleged arrangement. "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." In one cited example, Beasley told Davis he would try to outperform the 3.5 rebound line sportsbooks had set for a March 10, 2024, game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

With a second left and Milwaukee up by seven, Beasley challenged a Clippers shot and sprinted past four players to grab his fourth rebound as the horn sounded, a play prosecutors say secured winning bets for co-conspirators.Zamorano's attorney, Kenneth Breen, told reporters outside the courthouse that his client "looks forward to his day in court." Both defendants were released on bond. Goldman struck a more pointed tone, framing the case within the broader sports betting industry that has expanded rapidly since legalization. "There's a bigger conversation here about the industry, about individuals and institutions that are profiting billions and billions of dollars and fueling the addiction," Goldman said.

What to know about Malik Beasley's court case

Beasley's parents, actors Michael and Deena Beasley, co-signed his $100,000 bond and joined the arraignment by phone. A lighter moment broke the tension when Deena Beasley answered a question from the magistrate judge about how often she speaks with her son. "I probably call him every day. He might not answer every day," she said, drawing chuckles in the courtroom.Beasley has been aware of the investigation for about a year, according to prosecutors, and voluntarily surrendered rather than forcing agents to make an arrest.

He missed the entire 2025-26 NBA season while under investigation, instead playing for a Puerto Rican team co-owned by rapper Bad Bunny. His last NBA stint came with the Detroit Pistons on a one-year, $6 million contract during the 2024-25 season, a year in which he set a franchise record with 319 three-pointers made.

His widely reported financial problems include disputes with a Detroit landlord, a Milwaukee barber and a Minnesota dentist, along with a 2025 lawsuit from a sports marketing agency that resulted in a $1 million default judgment against him.Beasley now waits to see whether any NBA team will take a chance on his services while the case plays out. With the Aug. 6 status conference approaching and federal prosecutors continuing to build their case against Davis, Zamorano and the other co-defendants, the question of whether Beasley ever plays in the league again may depend as much on a courtroom in Brooklyn as it does on his jump shot.