Michael Beasley’s Best Shot at Redemption Is with the Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers and Michael Beasley—why not?

At this stage of the offseason, it makes a whole lot of sense for the two sides to join forces. Sure, nothing—literally nothing—of merit may result from the marriage, but who knows?

After all, Beasley is in dire need of redemption at just 25 years old. That very number and the scary-good potential that comes along with it should pique the interest of Mitch Kupchak and the front office.



Beasley was the No. 2 overall selection in the 2008 draft, but certainly had the talent to qualify for No. 1 if the spot had not gone to Derrick Rose. The Kansas State product has had a laughable, sometimes sad career trajectory to get to this point. The term free fall does not do it justice.

It started with a massive red flag at the rookie symposium. There was a trip to rehab. Multiple marijuana incidents. The Miami Heat picked him up last season after Minnesota and Phoenix gave it a whirl, and Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe noted after the season that "NBA sources said James was not pleased with Beasley’s focus and he lost the confidence of coach Erik Spoelstra shortly into the season."

So here we are.

Yet, there is a certain allure the Lakers are right to have, especially when one digests the numbers Beasley has posted on his wild journey to date:



All things considered, it is impressive to think that his career-high average of 19.2 points was just a few years ago. Not only did he at least attempt to become a better defender last year, he connected on 34.8 percent of his shots from long range.

So it should come as no surprise that the Lakers apparently liked what they saw when he worked out for them, per ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin.

"[Beasley] looked very good and he has been working out," one source said. "A tiny rust from layoff, but [he] did a good job."
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers