Florida State freshman Malik Beasley will enter the 2016 NBA Draft, head coach Leonard Hamilton said Monday.
“Malik is a wonderful young man and we are very happy for him and his family,” said Hamilton. “He enjoyed a great freshman year and we are looking forward to watching him as he realizes his dreams. He was an outstanding player for our basketball team, is a young man of tremendous character and is an extremely hard worker. We are behind Malik and know he will be successful in everything he does because he is such a quality person both on and off the basketball court.”
Beasley, an All-ACC Freshman team selection by the league’s 15 head coaches and the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association, is the first Florida State player to enter the NBA Draft after only one season of college basketball.
Beasley, the third highest-scoring freshman in the ACC this season, averaged 15.6 points in 34 games in leading the Seminoles to the second round of the NIT. The three-time ACC Rookie of the Week selection ranked 15th among all-ACC players in scoring, eighth in free throw percentage (.813) and 10th in field goal percentage (.471). Beasley scored in double figures in 30 of his 34 appearances and scored in double figures in the first 24 games of his career – falling only two games short of tying Stephon Marbury’s career opening streak double figure scoring. He finished second on the team in scoring with 529 points – the second highest single season point total by a freshman in Florida State history.
“Florida State University, Coach Hamilton and his staff were absolutely the best choices I could have made when I was deciding which college I would attend,” Beasley said. “The friendships I have formed with my teammates will last my entire lifetime. The things I have learned and the growth I have realized this season as both a person and player have made me confident that I can take the next step in realizing my dreams to play at the next level.”
Florida State has produced nine NBA Draft sections under Hamilton including draft lottery selection Al Thornton in 2007 and first round picks Toney Douglas in 2009 and Chris Singleton in 2011. Bernard James (in 2012) is Florida State’s most recent NBA Draft selection.
The 2016 NBA Draft is June 23 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.