Rick Osentoski - Imagn Images
The series between the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks was full of bad blood on both sides. On Thursday night, the teams finished off a series that featured very physical basketball throughout, with the Knicks winning the series, 4-2.
At the center of much of the drama of the series was key Pistons reserve Malik Beasley. Beasley had been talking trash earlier in the series, but his turnover with less than one second remaining ended the Pistons season.
As I said, this series was physical, and there was plenty of bad blood between the two teams. That bad blood only escalated due to the fact that these teams played incredibly close games. All six games in the series were up for grabs in the fourth quarter, and Game 4 was decided on a bad call that should’ve sent Tim Hardaway Jr. to the line for three free throws with the Pistons down one in the final second.
After Game 5, a dramatic Pistons win at Madison Square Garden, Beasley had this to say on Twitter, and a fan responded.
Mikal going for 44 Thursday
— Chris Reilly (@C_Reilly5) April 30, 2025
Then, Beasley quote-tweeted that tweet with this.
Minutes ? 😂 https://t.co/O9olrHhnSP
— Malik Beasley (@mbeasy5) April 30, 2025
Mikal Bridges didn’t score 44 points. But, he had a fantastic game, going 11-16 from the field for 25 points. And, after Jalen Brunson hit a three to put the Knicks up three with just over four seconds left, Malik Beasley did this.
— Strickland Vids (@StricklandVids) May 2, 2025
Oh, no. He was wide open! He was going to have an open three to tie the game and he simply dropped it. All that trash talk, and the series literally slipped through his fingers. He will have to think about his trash talk backfiring all offseason.