Earlier this week, there were two videos put out showing Delonte West being punched and kicked on a highway in Washington D.C. and then sounding completely incoherent while speaking to an officer about this situation.
One of the main takeaways from those videos was: why isn’t anyone helping out West and where are his family and friends?
The answer was made clear from a story by Shams Charania in The Athletic Tuesday that stated West had been given help numerous times in the past, but he has not been cooperative.
“From West’s former teammates and coaches to team officials, all have run into the same issue over and over with him. A trip for him to seek help is scheduled and booked, West agrees upon it, and then he cancels. “He has to want to be helped,” said one person directly involved in setting him up with assistance. One of his former teams, according to a person, tried “too many times to count.”
Just like the person stated in that piece, West has to want to be helped or nothing will change. We can yell and scream to the mountain top about mental health and drug use in this country, but if the people going through refuse the help, it won’t change their situation and you cannot force them.
At least we know there are many people out there who have tried and continue to try despite being let down every time.
Phil Martelli, who coached West and Jameer Nelson for several years at Saint Joseph’s, took to Twitter and commented on Nelson’s post which asked for people to keep West foremost in their thoughts.
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West played eight seasons in the NBA, including several seasons with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
