Question regarding Beasley

[Iputsomepantson]

Hey T-Wolves fans,

I'm a Heat fan who ended up being very disappointed that we traded Beasley. Not because I was a fan of his, but because of what we got for the #2 pick in the end. I haven't seen much of him this season, but I was wondering what your thoughts are of the guy's game? In particular, I'm most interested in whether you guys think he's a player that can be 1st or 2nd option in a successful franchise.

I'm asking this specifically because, one big criticism people had of Erik Spoelstra when Beasley was with the Heat was that Spoelstra just wasn't utilizing Beasley properly. They kept saying if he gave Beasley the proper plays, he would succeed and the Heat would win more. So is that the case? Is Beasley winning games for you all? Or is he simply a player getting great stats on a bad team (ala Shareef Abdhur-Raheem)?

[TMo519]

He has won games for us, like one or two LOL. Really, with Beasley, it's a tale of two seasons almost. He started slow trying to figure out where he fit in, exploded for a period, then kind of leveled off and was playing pretty well I thought. But then he started the string of ankle injuries in like January (I think?), and he really hasn't been the same since. Now he's got a bad hip hampering him and he just can't get healthy, but he keeps playing through it.

As far as his game, he's been pretty much what I expected. He's a guy who can get a shot off in virtually any circumstances, will wow you with his ability to score the ball from anywhere on the floor. His problem is he loses focus too frequently, both offensively and defensively, as I assume you know. Just those stretches where you wonder if he's all in. I think he can be a 2nd option on a good team. Probably a third option on a team with championship aspirations unless he improves the mental aspect of his game. Physically he can be a 1st option IMO. But I wouldn't put the SAR tag on him yet, he's only 21, still plenty of room to grow in his game.

[eyeteeth]

Yup. 2nd or 3rd option unless he makes a big leap mentally. His scoring efficiency is just waaay too low for a first option right now. That said, he has seemed either off or on, and as above, has been dealing with nagging injuries the 2nd half of the season. If he makes more of his shots and he can continue to improve on basic basketball skills (ie, keep TOs to a minimum), he could be pretty great.

[Iputsomepantson]

Yeah I definitely remember him losing focus, that's why I was never opposed to Spoelstra benching him. He may still be young and you can say that's why he's losing focus, but Rose is the same age and has the heart of a winner. I'm actually happy knowing we traded Beasley now, even if it was for nothing, because the Heat are better off without his growing pains. Maybe some day he will get that focus, but it just seems like to me like he will always be the type of player you look at and think he should better than the way he actually plays. Good luck with him and thanks for answering my ?.

[Chosen01]

I don't get why Minny fans are down on him all of a sudden. Before the injuries he was avg 22 and 6 on 48% shooting 56% TS then AS SOON AS HE GETS INJURED he has not been the same as kept rolling his ankle and other injuries, its pretty clear he is not 100%.

I can remember when this board was ecstatic when Beasley had his run. When Beasley first came, some of you had low expectations then when he exploded a lot of you claimed he could be that 1st option and your go to guy now it seems like you guys have given up on him.

[TrentTuckerForever]

^i can't speak for all Wolves fans, chosen1, but for me Beasley had a good 30 game run, then had been as advertised - inconsistent. I'm sure there's a +/- guy out there who can confirm, but just from watching this team Beasley only makes the team better when his jumper is falling (and he takes a lot of jumpers whether they're falling or not). He loses focus on D constantly (which you can't blame on the injuries) and he gets too preoccupied with his own game and the refs at times.

On the plus side, he appears to be be a better teammate than I thought he'd be, he's wiling to play though injury and of course he's still very young. Until he learns to play smarter, though, take more advantage of his physical gifts, I'm not going to call him a 1st option, 2nd option or anything. Right now he's a starter on a 17 win team, that's all you need to know.

[Jajwanda]

You wonder what a Steve Nash like player could do for guys like Beasley and Randolph if he could get them involved in the right way. Trying to play a structured offense with guys like these two and then a completely different guy like Love is just about impossible.

[Rolf]

I don't get why Minny fans are down on him all of a sudden. Before the injuries he was avg 22 and 6 on 48% shooting 56% TS then AS SOON AS HE GETS INJURED he has not been the same as kept rolling his ankle and other injuries, its pretty clear he is not 100%.

I've been trying to remind myself of this all season. It's insane for fans to ignore the correlation between his injuries and the drop-off in his play.

That said, the mental/defensive lapses are unjustifiable. He has a LONG ways to go before being a legit #1 option, but the potential is clearly there. Honestly, of all the players in the league who are not currently considered #1 guys, Beas is probably toward the top of the list of guys who have the potential to get there.

[eyeteeth]

You wonder what a Steve Nash like player could do for guys like Beasley and Randolph if he could get them involved in the right way. Trying to play a structured offense with guys like these two and then a completely different guy like Love is just about impossible.

You mean like Ricky Rubio? Here's hoping we find out.

[Vindicater]

I don't get why Minny fans are down on him all of a sudden. Before the injuries he was avg 22 and 6 on 48% shooting 56% TS then AS SOON AS HE GETS INJURED he has not been the same as kept rolling his ankle and other injuries, its pretty clear he is not 100%.

I can remember when this board was ecstatic when Beasley had his run. When Beasley first came, some of you had low expectations then when he exploded a lot of you claimed he could be that 1st option and your go to guy now it seems like you guys have given up on him.

I still think he can be our main scorer. He just needs to apply himself and get healthy. I think another strong pre-season working on his ball control and defensive awareness will see him move to another level next season.

If he is traded though I think he will slide into the background as his confidence will be shot.

I want him to stay and grow with this team.

[Beas]

He's definitely had his ups and down this season. I REALLY liked what he was showing during the start of the season and it really showed his great potential. If he can become more consistent he could develop into that second or possibly even first option that this team needs. He was playing well until he developed a lot of nagging injuries (ankle and hip mainly) than he eventually started his decline. He's young and his potential is huge but I think this season was very grueling on him. We haven't played spectacular and he definitely has a winning mentality so its probably pretty draining on him considering well the twolves are only a 17 win team right now. Sometimes it doesn't look like he's always has his head in the game. He's still making plenty of careless turnovers and his defense isn't there.

I really hope he is in our teams future though. I think its fair to assume his injuries are part to blame for his reduced production. The team is still very young and he seems to get along with everyone well and our team appears to have decent chemistry between all the young guys, we just need to get over that hump. We've been competing with most of the better teams in the league but we can't quite finish the games out. Another thing I like about him is he's pretty much our player that brings some needed swagger to our team. I would be pretty disappointed if we gave up on him this quick and got rid of him next season, unless we pick up some amazing wing or something but even then I would still hate to see him go.

[TrentTuckerForever]

I think this is a great take from A Wolf Among Wolves (emphasis mine):

"Michael Beasley’s first quarter against Dallas on Thursday begins like this: he misses a contested jumper off the bounce; he drives to the basket and misses a layup; he misses a flat-footed, contested three; he drives to the basket and gets fouled; he grabs an offensive rebound and misses a jumper; finally, his first shot falls, a driving bank shot at the rim. Later, when Peja Stojakovic enters the game, Beasley struggles to maneuver his way around screens, looks listless and lost in his attempts to find the veteran shooter in transition, is unable to contest Stojakovic’s deep threes. Later, after Beasley sat for most of the fourth quarter in favor of a fiery crew of reserves, he [re]-tweets: “I sure wish coach would just let @RealMikeBeasley play his game!”

Unfortunately, its beginning to look like that was the real Mike Beasley, playing the real Mike Beasley’s game. Earlier this year, when Beasley was draining over 60% of his long jumpers, hitting game winners and providing goofy leadership for his young teammates we wondered if we were seeing a career renaissance before our very eyes, a young talent coming into his own after two seasons languishing on Miami’s bench. But Beasley has regressed back to the mean."

http://www.awolfamongwolves.com/?p=493#more-493

[abrewbro68]

I don't get why Minny fans are down on him all of a sudden. Before the injuries he was avg 22 and 6 on 48% shooting 56% TS then AS SOON AS HE GETS INJURED he has not been the same as kept rolling his ankle and other injuries, its pretty clear he is not 100%.

I can remember when this board was ecstatic when Beasley had his run. When Beasley first came, some of you had low expectations then when he exploded a lot of you claimed he could be that 1st option and your go to guy now it seems like you guys have given up on him.

This x100

And Wolves fans, lets not forget Mike is playing a position right now he's not really used to playing. I'll admit, the turnovers and poor defense need to stop but it's on a team full of turnovers and crappy defense so it needs to stop everywhere. But with that said, first year on a team, first year playing SF, and the injuries to top it off, I'm fairly happy with what he's accomplished. Like it was already said, he's been a more willing passer than what I expected and remember (of course that has increased his turnovers) and from going to the playoffs his first two seasons to this season has to be an eye opener for him.
I'm excited for a first year off season for him getting to concentrate on SF. I hope he works with a guy like a Tim Grover.

[BIRDMAN BIRDMAN]

I dunno man, tbh.

Biggest Beas fan right here and just like what I've posted in another thread -- at first I was really wtf @ how other Minny fans wanted him gone since it's rare to have a great talent and potential in Beas and given that the roster currently is sht......... but I give up and im siding with them. Kinda unfair cause of the nagging injuries Beas had had but still, I've lost hope for this kid. Cant believe I rooted for him ever since '07 and never gave up til now. I bet he's moved this off-season. He's way too ****ing lazy. ****ing ballhog. That iso staredown or whatever they call it needs to ****ing go too. I'm glad he deleted his Twitter for like the 9583958282958th time though. You dont see DRose tweetin. Beas needs to get **** right and toughen up. He's way too talented to play like this.

On a more positive note -- who knows, as someone said - this is his 1st yr with a new team playing a new position under a new system with new players. This upcoming off-season will be his 1st off-season coming off a full T-Wolves season so there might be light still.

[phonzadellika]

Beasley's talents may be working against him at this point...he's so uber-talented that he probably thinks that he can't take a bad shot, which leads to his crap shot selection. He's not really a student of the game yet like Love is. And as bad as Beasley's shot selection can be I still remember when he was out with the ankle injuries before the all-star break and how hard it was for the rest of the offense to get going and how KLoves scoring went down as a result, so at this point he probably feels that even if he takes what he feels is a difficult but the rest of think is bad shot he's still helping the team.

I don't think Beas, given enough time and a shorter leash, will be a bad SF. I think that he can still be an overall plus in the starting lineup. I think the Wolves may be able to find better options, and I really wouldn't be opposed to trying AR at SF provided that AR can prove that his shot can be consistent. I'm willing to give him another year.