Mark Cuban Rarely Picks Someone In His Tesla— but When He Does, It’s Life-Changing
When it’s important enough, it’s personal.
About 10 years go, Delonte West, a former NBA player was worth $16 million dollars — thanks to 432 NBA games, 4,198 recorded points and 1,540 assists.
All that came to a naught.
Recently, on a rainy north Texas day., he stood on a side of a Dallas highway gas station wearing a white sweater, baggy gray sweatpants and slip-on loafers covered in dirt, the former NBA point guard was holding a small cardboard sign.
Why?
In his words after an arrest, “Before, coaches and GMs said I was a tough, scrappy player. They wanted to go war with me on their side. Everything after that incident became, ‘Did he take his medicine?’ He’s bipolar.’”
According to a friend, West was dealing with extreme paranoia while addicted to embalming fluid and alcohol. In 2015, West told The Post’s Rick Maese that he had regularly attempted to kill himself as a teenager. He had his mental health challenges.
2020 photo of him on the streets didn’t sit well in the minds of many basketball lovers. One of them was Dallas native, Mark Cuban.
What stood out was what Mark Cuban did not do next— he didn’t fling his checkbook to write a check. Or send someone to pick West up. Instead, he got in his blue Tesla car to seek West himself. He went to cajole West to accept treatment.
That plea of Mark, in person, had the desired effect. West did get into the car and enroll for treatment.
“I just got a picture today, he was skydiving — SKYDIVING,” Cuban told Barstool Sports. “He’s making progress. I just hope he stays with it. The first couple weeks are tough, but going through rehab and dealing with addiction that’s not easy.”
West may be on the road to recovery. What still stands out in my mind, Mark Cuban was on the road himself. West last played for Cuban’s Dallas Mavericks. And Mark made it personal — he just looking after one of his own.
And that can be life changing.
It’s not about who surrounds you, it is about who is with you when you are alone. Delonte West had Mark Cuban. Not his 4.3 Billion dollars, Mark Cuban- the human.
That is the essence of humanity.
In the tough year of 2020, Mark Cuban exemplified it with his mask on, picking West personally.
A personal thanks for showcasing the finer, goodness of life.
