Michael Beasley will be a top 5 scorer in the league in a few years.
Wasn't really looking for predictions, but I'll give it a shot.
Beasley has all the tools on offense to be a top 5 scorer in the league, but a couple things hold him back. Beasley's attitude reminds a lot of people of guys like Michael Olowakandi and Eddie Griffin. Players with all the talent and potential in the world, but they didn't seem like they cared as much about the game as the elite players in the league. That's one thing that can seriously hold him back.
Another is the fact that his per 48 minute averages in scoring is 25th in the NBA. That's not saying he's a bad scorer as top 25 is certainly good, but along with elite players like Dwyane Wade, Lebron James, and Kobe Bryant at the top of the list, other players like Charlie Villanueva, Leandro Barbosa, Al Harrington, Nate Robinson, and Ben Gordon all put the ball in the hoop at a faster pace.
In 5 years, could he do this? There's a chance, but the chance is very slim. Let's keep in mind that all 3 of the best scorers in the NBA will most likely still be in the league in 5 years. All of them will still be in their prime except for maybe Kobe, who has yet to show that age is affecting him. We'll take out Kobe and say somehow he declines bad enough where he isn't a top 10 scorer.
Let's add in Carmelo Anthony, Danny Granger, Kevin Durant, Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh, Dwight Howard, Amare Stoudemire, O.J. Mayo, and Devin Harris. All of those players are young and at this point in their careers, much better scorers than Michael Beasley.
Another advantage they have over Beasley? They are their team's superstar. Wade's a franchise player and the chances of him leaving Miami are very very very very slim. Sure he's a free agent in 2010, but Miami will do everything in it's power to keep Wade until his career is over. If Wade is still on the Heat 5 years down the road, he'll still be scoring 26+ points per game. And with Wade essentially a point guard, or the player who dominates the ball for his team, can you really see another player on the Heat putting up 25+ along with Wade? Doubtful.
So, in your mind, Beasley will be putting up more points per game in 5 years than Melo, Granger, Durant, Roy, CP3, CB4, DH12, Amare, Mayo, Devin Harris, and... Kobe, Lebron, and Wade?
With Beasley's current attitude, his role on the Heat, and his current offensive production, I can't even see Beasley as a top 15 scorer in 5 years.
If I were the Heat I would've took Mayo, but that's for another day.
