NBA: Suns waive Michael Beasley

The Phoenix Suns have waived forward Michael Beasley, the NBA team's official website announced Tuesday (Wednesday, PHL time) via an official press statement.

The two sides agreed to terms on a buyout, which means the salary cap hit to the team will be reduced. The second overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft was set to earn a total of $12.25 million over the next two seasons.

“The Suns were devoted to Michael Beasley’s success in Phoenix,” said Suns President of Basketball Operations Lon Babby in the press release. “However, it is essential that we demand the highest standards of personal and professional conduct as we develop a championship culture. Today’s action reflects our commitment to those standards. The timing and nature of this, and all of our transactions, are based on the judgment of our Basketball leadership as to how best to achieve our singular goal of rebuilding an elite team.”

Back in August, Beasley had been arrested for possession of marijuana.

During the last week of August, the Suns swung a trade with the Milwaukee Bucks, giving them veteran Caron Butler, while taking back significantly less money in the form of Ish Smith and Slava Kravtsov. The savings from the deal presumably gave them enough to release Beasley.

In 75 games with the Suns last season (20 starts), Beasley put up career-lows of 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds, playing just 20.7 minutes per game. His shooting numbers were also the poorest they've been in his five-year career. - AMD, GMA News