General

Michael Beasley Is Gonna Be Just Fine

Sep 19, 2008, 2:45 PM UTC

Michael Beasley fans, it’s time to just give in. He fought for hisâ†µright toâ†µbe young. Now, it’s looking like he might be that enfantâ†µterrible -- what with hisâ†µimplication in Darrell Arthur/Mario Chalmers mini-scandal, and himâ†µfighting for his right to “fail to cooperate with the leagueâ†µinvestigation of the matter.”â†µ
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â†µFunny photos and possibleâ†µcover-ups aside, it’s getting harder and harder to see Beasley as justâ†µa big-mouthed babe in the woods. Not that this little shindig on theâ†µeve of the Rookie Transition program was all that terrible, but it’sâ†µabout as stupidly rebellious as you can get. Factor in the recent agentâ†µturmoil, and at least until he proves otherwise, Beasley’s going to beâ†µstuck with the bad boy label. If you’re keeping track, that’sâ†µdifferent from the post-Arenas goofball shtick I’d been trying toâ†µfoist on him. And yet it’s not quite as deep a problem as what Joshâ†µHoward’s got to deal with now. This is young, wild, and crazy kidâ†µstuff that runs counter to hard work and discipline, but hey,â†µsometimes it just doesn’t matter with the likes of Beasley.â†µ
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For me, the staunch Beasley supporter? I couldn’t care less. He’ll beâ†µfine. I don’t care about pot, defiling the proud tradition of Rookieâ†µTransition, or sticking it to the Commissioner’s office. I imagineâ†µmany of you don’t, except insofar as they point toward furtherâ†µdisciplinary ruin down the road and on the court. I’m willing to betâ†µthey won’t. And if it’s just a question of moral turpitude, of enteringâ†µthe league with an unprofessional bang -- let me ask, are you concernedâ†µabout your opinion, or that of the hypothetical “other guy” who isâ†µprobably looking for an excuse to walk away from the NBA? Or, as we’veâ†µseen with the Howard incident, stickâ†µaround just to say “I told you so”.â†µ
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â†µAs long as no one gets killed, or arrested, or benched for prim andâ†µproper concerns on a team that, ideally, will be kind of a chaoticâ†µwork-in-progress, I’m going to sit back and just let Beasley beâ†µBeasley. In about three years, I’ll start fielding questions aboutâ†µwhether he’s got what it takes to lead a team to a title. Since, youâ†µknow, the fairness of Miami having Wade and grabbing him demands theâ†µrookie automatically set an example for everyone else in the room.â†µHell, you might even say that this kind of freak draft occurrenceâ†µgives Beasley that much more of a cushion to be an eff-up.â†µ

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

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