Los Angeles Lakers Have Important Decision To Make

The Los Angeles Lakers will have to decide on Malik Beasley's team option for the 2023-24 NBA season.

The Los Angeles Lakers acquired Malik Beasley in a trade with the Utah Jazz during the regular season, and the former Florida State star helped the team make the NBA Playoffs as the seventh seed in the Western Conference.

Beasley finished the regular season with averages of 12.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest while shooting 39.5% from the field and 35.7% from the three-point range.

He is known as a player who provides instant offense off the bench and can get hot from the three-point range.

Malik Beasley is only the third Laker in history to make 7 threes in a single half:

Kobe Bryant (8 3PM, 2003)
Glen Rice (7 3PM, 1999)
Malik Beasley (7 3PM, 2023) pic.twitter.com/2azSyuEP9Z

— NBA History (@NBAHistory) March 15, 2023

That said, the 26-year-old fell out of the rotation during the NBA Playoffs and only appeared in 11 games with an average of 3.0 points per contest in 8.3 minutes of playing time (the Denver Nuggets swept the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals).

On June 29, the Lakers will have to make a decision on if they want to keep Beasley.

He has a team option for the 2023-24 season that would pay him $16.5 million.

If the Lakers decline, Beasley will become an unrestricted free agent. 

Notable dates for Lakers off-season

6/22: NBA Draft (#17 & #47 picks)
6/29: Mo Bamba contract guarantee deadline (10.3M)
6/29: Malik Beasley team option deadline (16.5M)
6/30: Jarred Vanderbilt contract guarantee deadline (4.6M)
6/30: Qualifying offer deadline for Rui & Reaves

— Ralph Mason (@Ralph_MasonJr) June 16, 2023

Beasley was the 19th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft and has also spent time with the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves (in addition to the Jazz and Lakers). 

While he was not a contributor to their significant playoff run, it's possible the Lakers would not have finished the regular season as strong as they did without him. 

Therefore, their decision will be an intriguing one to watch out for on Thursday. 

More on the Los Angeles Lakers can be read here