Bucks' Malik Beasley is proving to be one of the NBA's best bang for buck signings

From the moment it was announced that the Milwaukee Bucks signed Malik Beasley to a one-year deal worth the minimum this past off-season, it was viewed as a huge steal.

Despite coming off a tough close to the 2022-23 NBA season with the Los Angeles Lakers, Beasley was still undeniably worth more than a minimum contract. Yet, the two-guard still signed a "prove-it" deal to showcase his talents on a contender, and thus far, the results have been excellent, as he's proven to be arguably the best bang for buck signing of the off-season league-wide.

How impressive Malik Beasley has been for the Milwaukee Bucks

In 21 games this season, all starts, Beasley is averaging 12.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and a steal per game while shooting 48.4 percent from the floor and 46 percent from three. Those are solid numbers on the surface, but let's look closer at how impactful he's been.

According to ESPN's Bobby Marks, Beasley's current contract, worth $2.7 million, is tied for the 354th highest in the NBA this season and ranks dead last in terms of starting shooting guards. Yet, he ranks first in effective field goal percentage among shooting guards and eighth among all players. He also has the third-best field goal percentage and fifth-best 3-point percentage among two guards.

A significant reason for his success has been the looks he's gotten offensively playing next to stars in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. Per NBA.com/stats, Beasley has shot 43.5 percent on his "open" triples and 50.9 percent on "wide open" triples, which rank fourth and second in the league this season among players with at least 50 3-point attempts in each category.

Antetokounmpo and Lillard command so much attention that Beasley is getting tremendous looks on offense, and he's capitalized thus far, fueling one of the hottest starts of his career.

People laughed when Coach Griffin said that Beasley would be taking on the toughest defensive assignments for the Bucks this season, and while he's had a few blunders, the guard has brought some intensity to that side of things as well. Even if he's not locking down players, he's constantly putting forth effort to make things as difficult as possible for them, adding to his value.

Beasley could very well be the best bang for your buck off-season signing the Bucks have had since they added Brook Lopez on an incredibly team-friendly deal in the 2018 off-season. Jon Horst, the team's general manager, has seemingly found another hidden gem on the free agent market.

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