Minnesota Timberwolves’ Malik Beasley pleads guilty to felony charge

Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Malik Beasley has pleaded guilty to a felony charge of threats of violence related to a September incident in which he was arrested, his attorney, Steven Haney, confirmed to ESPN on Monday.

Haney said Beasley, 24, won’t have to serve jail time or home confinement until after the 2020-21 NBA season. His sentence will not exceed 120 days. If Beasley successfully completes probation, his threat of violence charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor, according to Haney.

As part of the plea, a felony drug charge was dismissed

“This resolution will allow Malik to play the 2020-2021 NBA season and work on becoming the player and person we know he can be,” Haney told ESPN.

Beasley, who averaged 20.7 points in 14 games with the Timberwolves last season after being traded by the Denver Nuggets in February, was facing felony controlled substance/narcotics and felony receiving/concealing stolen property charges, according to Hennepin County jail records.

In November, Beasley, a restricted free agent, reached a four-year, $60 million contract with the Timberwolves. The fourth year is a team option.

In a statement to ESPN at the time, the Plymouth Police Department said officers were called to Beasley’s residence on a reported weapons offense. The reporting individuals told officers they had stopped their car in front of the house, and a “suspect walked up to their vehicle, tapped on the vehicle window, pointed a gun at them and advised them to get off of the property.”

“As the victims drove away, the suspect was observed holding the gun up to his shoulder, pointing it at their vehicle,” the police statement said.

Officers set up a perimeter to locate the individual and detected a strong odor of marijuana, according to the statement. A vehicle attempted to leave the property and was stopped by police. Three people in the car were detained and later released. A man, who identified himself as the homeowner, was outside and yelling at officers.

Officers obtained a search warrant for the property and located narcotics and numerous guns, one of which was confirmed as stolen, police said.