Michael Beasley: Where's the Love for Him in the NBA Draft?
Michael Beasley is a consensus top two NBA Draft pick. Everyone agrees to that.
So why is everyone saying he could be such a bust?
Most draft "experts" have said that Beasley will not pass the Heat with the second selection, and as of right now, it's a coin toss between him and Derrick Rose for the first overall selection.
However, the same "experts" have compared him to Derrick Coleman, the first overall pick of the Nets in 1990 that had a pedestrian career at best. In short, they are saying he can be a bust. Big time.
So what gives?
This article by ESPNmagazine.com starts by what you would believe is a paragraph describing Beasley's game, only they are not describing his game, they are describing Coleman's.
The comparisons don't end there. There is also the mental side of his game. People question if, like Coleman, whether he has the drive and the passion to play the game.
(Blank Stare)
Did they watch K-State this year? They went 21-12, They beat USC in the first round of the NCAAs and most importantly:
Wait for it...
THEY BEAT KANSAS!
K-State trumped the undefeated national champion by nine points. Sure it was at home (I'm still waiting for the tiebreaker in Africa), but they beat the would be National Champs. When was the last time K-State beat Kansas at home? 24 years ago in 1984. Beasley would be born five years later.
Would they have done it without Beasley? No.
Beasley took K-State and put them on the map again. He carried that team into the NCAA tournament. Sure, Bill Walker is a great player, but admit it, without Beasley, they wouldn't have won 20 games.
And people want to question his desire? Please...
And if that was not enough, people try to question his off-court attitude. He is as much a prankster as he is a basketball player.
Everyone tries to point to the incident two years ago, while attending Oak Hill Academy, a national powerhouse, Beasley and a friend made a bet about who could sign his name in the most places in the school.
Beasley signed the principal's car and got booted from the school. Everyone says this is a red light. Let me tell you, it's not.
The guy was 17. He did what every 17-year-old does. He had some fun. At least he wasn't doing drugs, drinking and driving, beating up on some dude at a bar or getting money from boosters. The list could be longer.
In a world where most athletes are snobby, uptight, and give away the image that they are "thugs", Beasley should be considered a breath of fresh air. Not a cancer.
Both Chicago and Miami should not worry, Beasley is no thug.
Where is the love?
