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Former NBA player Delonte West attacked in D.C. area, ranted afterward in viral videos

Delonte West is a native of the Washington area where he went to Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md.

By Albert Lee Updated
Washington Wizards v Cleveland Cavaliers
Delonte West has fallen from being a regular NBA starter to being apparently homeless in recent years.
Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images

UPDATE at 8:45 p.m. ET on Jan. 22 — The Prince George’s County, Md. police issued a statement confirming that the fight happened in Maryland though West’s name wasn’t mentioned. That said, the description of everything more or less confirms it.

Apparently, no one was charged because neither West nor the person whom he fought would press charges. The video was also ... apparently shot by a police officer and put on social media, so the officer in question was also suspended, pending an investigation. This is wild.

The original post is below.

The Washington, D.C. area is home to the Washington Wizards and a lot of current and future NBA players. While Kevin Durant may be the most well-known D.C. area native player who’s in the NBA, another one hit the news on Monday for the wrong reasons.

Former NBA player and DMV area native Delonte West is another. He went to Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md., played in the NBA from 2004-12 for several teams including the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2008-10 where he was a reliable scorer both as a reserve and as a starter. But recently, he has fallen off the radar. The last time I heard about West, there was speculation of him being homeless after a picture surfaced of West asking people for money in Prince George’s County, Md. in 2016.

But he resurfaced again on Monday, after apparently getting in a fight and beaten on the street near Oxon Hill, Md. based on the videos I’ve seen. After law enforcement was called to break up the fight, West was in handcuffs and ranted incoherently. I’ve decided not to embed the videos, but TMZ has.

West has a history of mental health issues and was previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder though he has disputed that. His former college teammate at St. Joseph’s and former NBA player Jameer Nelson wrote a message Monday night on it.

Also, Phil Martelli, West’s head coach at St. Joe’s added this.

My hope is that West gets the assistance he needs regarding his mental health. Even though he never played for the Wizards, it would also be nice to see the local NBA team reach out to support him in any way they can.