Closing the chapter. Malik Beasley is ready to leave the drama with estranged wife Montana Yao behind after he was caught canoodling with Larsa Pippen.
“There was a very brief, eight-month marriage and we hope the dissolution of their marriage will also be very brief,” the 24-year-old NBA player’s attorneys said in a statement to Us Weekly on Wednesday, January 20. “Malik looks to put this matter behind him and move forward in a positive direction both personally and professionally.”
Beasley and Yao, 23, met in 2018 and welcomed their son, Makai, in March 2019. The model filed for divorce from the Minnesota Timberwolves player in December 2020, days after photos surfaced of him holding hands with Pippen, 46, in Miami. Yao then claimed via Instagram that she and her infant son were “told to leave our family home” as the PDA scandal played out in the public eye. At the time, the former Miss Malibu Teen USA said that there was “no private or public addressing of the situation, nor any type of apology” from either Beasley or Pippen.
“I mainly wanted to say, I have never received so many kind words of encouragement and love, and it has really held me up to be strong for not only myself, but more importantly for my son,” Yao added in her lengthy social media post. “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to respond to each and every one of you, but just know I have read almost every single message, comment, etc.”
Pippen, for her part, shares four children, Scotty Jr., 20, Preston, 18, Justin, 15, and Sophia, 12, with her estranged husband, Scottie Pippen. The couple tied the knot in 1997 and split twice, first in 2016 and again when Scottie, 55, filed for divorce in 2018. As she continued to spark controversy with Beasley, a source told Us exclusively that Larsa was catching feelings.
“Larsa is already head over heels for Malik,” the insider said before the new year. “She’s in all the way and sees a future with him.”
Though the Real Housewives of Miami alum was falling quickly, the source added that “friends are telling her to take it slow and really get to know him before she jumps into this serious relationship, but it’s too late.”
When the reality TV personality first made headlines for stepping out with the pro athlete, she clapped back at haters on social media, warning in an Instagram Story at the time not to “trust what you see” online. Weeks later, she gushed about “clicking” with that special someone.
“Sometimes you meet a person and you just click — you’re comfortable with them, like you’ve known them your whole life, and you don’t have to pretend to be anyone or anything,” she wrote in an Instagram Story in December before she and Beasley flaunted their romance at his 24th birthday celebration in Miami.
As the drama continued, Yao hit back at Larsa’s claim that Beasley was already separated before their chemistry took off. “This is 100% false,” Yao replied via Twitter. “Continue to speak on my name and my relationship and we’re going to have issues. Receipts don’t lie. Let’s not go there. I think you’ve embarrassed yourself enough already.”
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