Mark Cuban Reunited Troubled NBA Guard Delonte West With Mother
Sep 29, 2020, 4:43 PM
Delonte West with the Dallas Mavericks (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Life in the NBA can be glamourous. Life after the NBA isn’t always so easy. Such has been the case for longtime NBA journeyman Delonte West who has battled with substance abuse after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder late in his NBA career. Now, the NBA family, spearheaded by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is rallying to help West, the basketball veteran.
In January, a video circulated of a beaten and bloodied West in handcuffs in Maryland. Earlier this week, a photo emerged of West appearing destitute and asking for money in Dallas. That’s when Cuban jumped at the chance to help.
West, who played for the Mavericks in 2011-12, his final season in the NBA, met Cuban at a Dallas gas station according to TMZ, before reuniting with his mother at a nearby hotel.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that after meeting with his mother and Cuban, the longtime NBA guard agreed to check into a rehab facility.
A Delonte West update, as people close to the ex-NBA player going through very difficult personal struggle continue to offer help: Sources say Mavs owner Mark Cuban reunited West with his mother in Dallas on Monday — and now West has checked into rehab facility in Florida.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 29, 2020
“A Delonte West update, as people close to the ex-NBA player going through very difficult personal struggle continue to offer help,” Charania tweeted. “Sources say Mavs owner Mark Cuban reunited West with his mother in Dallas on Monday — and now West has checked into rehab facility in Florida.”
Cuban had been trying to help West over the last several years after his career ended.
Asked if he's seen reports on Delonte West, @mcuban said, "Terrible. We’ve tried to help him so many times. He’s got to help himself now.”
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) February 25, 2016
In 2016, Cuban told Brad Townsend of the Dallas Daily News that previous efforts to help West had proved fruitless and would require more effort from West.
West was a solid contributor in the NBA over his eight-year career. The guard averaged 9.7 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.9 rebounds per game with four different franchises. West drafted 24th overall out of St. Joseph’s in 2004.
