No Regard Recap: 11/10/2010

One Game We Watched Last Night: Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Sacramento Kings
Wolves: 98 Kings: 89

by Andrew Rhymer

If you invite Michael Beasley to a party, he'll eventually show up. It might not be until 2 AM, and he may arrive stoned and dressed as the Predator, but the allure of a good time is something Be Easy does not just pass up.

Last night in Sacramento, Beasley finally showed up. He dropped a new career-high, 42 points, to lead his team over the Kings. The best part was that he did it all in classic Mike Beasley fashion. (If that is not a thing yet, it will be soon.)

We all know Michael Beasley is crazy, like, vintage Artest crazy. Not, "I'd like to thank my therapist" crazy, but more like, "What the fuck's a therapist?" crazy, which makes his games, particularly those in which he dominates, incredibly fun to watch.

On Wednesday against the Kings, Beasley hit jumpers most players wouldn't dream of taking, and bulldozed big men on recklessly illogical paths to the rim. He was knocked headfirst to the ground on more than one occasion, where he would lie, waiting for a teammate to help him up, then just when a loyal Kevin Love or Darko Milicic would extend a hand, he would jump up of his own volition and saunter off, smiling vacantly and laughing to himself.

The only player on the Timberwolves able to consistently keep up with Beasley last night was Corey Brewer, a mercurial human whirlwind himself—though Brewer's brand of mania is more the spindly Tasmanian Devil to Beasley's batshit Marvin the Martian.

After the Timberwolves secured their second win of the season, Beasley moseyed off to the sideline to give his post-game interview. On the way over, a camera followed him and he bumped a Sacramento bench warmer, whose identity I cannot figure out for the life of me. Dude bumped him and apologized, but Beasley's reaction was immediate and unequivocal, "Fuck you. Don't fuck with me."

Seconds later, a local reporter stuck a microphone in Beasley's face and he used the time to rehearse for the next hall-of-fame post-game player speech. In his interview, Beasley explained that he scored 42 because it felt like his team needed him to show up tonight. The reasons for this sudden urgency were substituted for a shout out to a newborn baby, and a question about when he gets to play basketball next. But tonight the man certainly showed up to make the announcement: Mike Beasley has arrived.

Some might say he was three years late. He'd probably insist he's right on time.

One Game We Didn't Watch Last Night: Charlotte Bobcats vs. Toronto Raptors

Bobcats: 101 Raptors: 96

Raptors fans apparently love Sonny Weems.

If you handed me the Raptors roster and said, "Try to pick the five guys who start for this team," I'd pick out a different bunch of players each time. Outside of Andrea Bargnani, there's just no way to tell who gets the nod each night. And maybe coach Jay Triano should think about selecting a different group of guys to trot out at tip-off himself: The only guys on the Raps who finished this game with positive plus/minus stats were Amir Johnson, Julian Wright, and Sonny Weems, all off the bench.

Now that's a starting lineup I'd gladly watch.