Michael Beasley, more meme than basketball player, and one of the finest content creators in the league, is back. The 28-year-old actually started this season in the NBA, rather than dominating the Chinese Basketball League again, and has played 20 games for the New York Knicks. He’s averaging 15 minutes per game, but on Sunday against the Atlanta Hawks, Beasley played only 10.
Michael Beasley received a standing ovation for fouling out in 10 minutes
Beasley may not be “good” at basketball, but he’s a must watch.
It’s not a sign that he was playing poorly: In 10 minutes, Beasley fouled out.
It takes work to foul out in 10 minutes. Predictably, Beasley recorded an offensive foul and took an intentional one early in the game to stop a fast break. You need a couple fouls like that to reach six total so quickly. This is difficult, but it’s not completely rare: 59 players have fouled out in 10 minutes or fewer since the 2000-01 season. Most recently, Salah Mejri did it in only six minutes without scoring. At least Beasley scored one point in his 10 minutes of play.
The even better part of this was the Madison Square Garden reaction, though. The Garden feels like it has been a special place this season, and the Knicks appear to be a bit better than the past few years. When Beasley fouled out in the fourth quarter, you can see him getting a standing ovation. It might not be clear in the video above, but the other broadcasting crew confirms it.
I also love that Beasley pats the referee who whistled his sixth foul on the shoulder before leaving the court. And Beasley was sincere! He knew what he did.
The last time Beasley recorded a high statistic in a low minute total, he was putting up 18 field goal attempts in 15 minutes. Fouling out in 10 minutes doesn’t quite top that, but it’s wonderful all the same.
