Pistons fans experiencing Malik Beasley rollercoaster is comedy gold for Bucks fans

The NBA Cup matchup between the Milwaukee Bucks and Pistons on Tuesday was the most important game of the season thus far for both teams. Milwaukee and Detroit sat at 3-0 in group play, and a win secured a ticket to the knockout round next week.

The hype didn't match the results, at least not for Pistons fans. The Bucks cruised to a 128-107 win as Giannis Antetokounmpo (28) and Damian Lillard (27) combined for 55 points on a hot shooting night for Milwaukee. The Bucks put together their most complete performance of the season and were only outscored in the fourth quarter when the reserves were in.

Speaking of the most complete performances of the season, former Bucks guard Malik Beasley did the opposite. He's averaging 15.3 points per game on 42.9% shooting from the field and 39.1% from three, up from the 11.3 points he averaged last season in Milwaukee, where he was primarily a starter.

Beasley entered the matchup scoring double-digits in the last 13 games he's played, but you wouldn't have known that. He had his second-worst shooting performance of the season, finishing with only four points on 2-of-10 shooting from the field and 0-of-4 from deep in 18 minutes of action.

Former Bucks guard Malik Beasley underwhelms in NBA Cup game

Tuesday was Beasley's second "revenge game" of the season. He scored a season-high 26 points against the Bucks in an overtime loss in November. There was more on the line with it being an NBA Cup game this go-round, and Beasley came up short.

Bucks fans know a thing or two about that. Inconsistency was one of the themes of his game during his lone season in Wisconsin. He averaged 8.8 points per game in Milwaukee's playoff series against Indiana. His points scored per game ranged from 20 to 0.

Detroit fans had high hopes on Tuesday, especially because the Pistons won't come anywhere near the 2025 NBA Finals. Winning the NBA Cup (or at the very least advancing to the knockout round) would be monumental for a fanbase desperate for some sort of success, particularly after going on a historic losing streak last season.

By no means does Beasley deserve the full blame for the loss (Jaden Ivey also had a poor shooting night), but his performance further proved why the Bucks didn't re-sign him and let him walk in free agency.