G West Held Out of Season Opener
Cavs guard Delonte West remained in the locker room on Tuesday night as the Cavs opened the regular season with a loss against the Boston Celtics, 95-89.
Cavs coach Mike Brown said GM Danny Ferry and a support group of West’s decided to keep him inactive on Tuesday, as the guard continues to battle bipolar disorder and mood problems that have gotten him arrested and accused of spousal battery this offseason.
“They have some things that they feel they have to get in order for him to be active,” Brown said. “When they say he’s ready then he’ll be out on the floor.”
West was in Cleveland’s locker room before the game, as he went for a workout inside the Q roughly an hour before the game.
Boston coach Doc Rivers, who coached West for 2 ½ years, said nothing but kind things about West on Tuesday night.
“I just pray for him, honestly,” he said. “I just hope things work out for him.”
“We didn’t have all this,” he said. “We had some issues, but we didn’t have all this. It’s tough. Those are the kids you just hope somehow, someone can touch him. You can’t give up on him. You shouldn’t give up on anyone breathing, that’s my belief. Obviously, I don’t know exactly what’s going on, but it’s a lot of stuff. You just hope somehow, somebody gets to him.
Given the legal issues that West has stumbled into lately, he likely faces an NBA suspension when he returns to the team.
