DALLAS — Delonte West hasn’t joined the Texas Legends more than two weeks after the NBA Development League team acquired his rights.
West was picked up by the affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 25, though Mavericks owner Mark Cuban flatly ruled out a return to the team that suspended the veteran guard twice in two weeks before waiving him in October.
Mavericks president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson, a co-owner of the Legends, says the “door is open” but he hasn’t had any contact with a new agent for West.
“He’s got a big heart and deserves a second chance with someone,” Nelson said. “He needs to play, whether it’s here or overseas.”
West, who has bipolar disorder, was a valuable role player in a veteran backcourt for Dallas last season. His preseason playing time in October was limited behind younger guards Darren Collison and O.J. Mayo.
West was waived after two suspensions for conduct detrimental to the team. He was involved in a pair of locker room incidents during the preseason, and was on his second straight one-year contract for the veteran minimum, which was $1.2 million this season.
The first suspension of West was lifted after just a day after a meeting with Nelson and Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle.
A week later, though, West said he received a text telling him not to come to practice a week before the start of the regular season and was waived a few days later. He said he was blamed for an argument that didn’t involve him in the locker room after a preseason game.
While the Legends retain West’s D-League rights, he can still sign with an NBA team at any time. The Legends play in the Dallas suburb of Frisco.
“We wish nothing but the very best for Delonte as he finds his way back to the NBA,” Nelson said.
An eighth-year pro, West was suspended for the first 10 games of the 2010-11 season after pleading guilty to weapons charges in Maryland. Authorities say he was carrying three loaded guns and a knife when he was stopped for speeding on a three-wheel motorcycle in 2009.
West also has played for Boston and Cleveland. He has career averages of 9.7 points and 3.6 assists.
West has apparently even disappeared from Twitter, once a frequent outlet for him. He posted several statements related to his suspension the day he was banned. Those were later removed, and his last post as of Monday afternoon was Jan. 2.
