A heartwarming story in the basketball world right now is the resurgence of former NBA guard Delonte West.
West, who primarily played for the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers during his career, was plagued by mental illness and substance addiction for years. However, he’s been able to climb out of that hole and was recently seen competing in a tryout for the BIG3 basketball league.
Now, former Miami Heat player Michael Beasley has come forward to express his confusion over the fact that he received very little help and support during his struggles with substances relative to West.
“Do I have to be in Delonte West’s shoes to get help?” asked Beasley. “No disrespect to Delonte West or people in his position. But what does it take to do the right thing? My whole life I asked for help. People called me crazy. I don’t leave the house. I play basketball, and I go home. I don’t care what y’all do no more. I try to talk to my kids as much as I can. I’ve reached out so much, so many times to different people and it’s just, I have to die with some kind of dignity.”
Despite being an incredibly talented basketball player, Beasley struggled to stay out of trouble off the court during his NBA career. He had several substance-related incidents during his time in the league.
Although Beasley seemingly never hit the low level that West hit with his own addiction issues, the former Heat forward clearly feels like he’s needed more support than he’s gotten over the years. It is tragic to hear that he feels as though he has been overlooked by the basketball community.
