One of the strangest stories in NBA history involved a rumor about LeBron James getting livid about teammate Delonte West having a relationship with his mother in the late 2000s. The rumor mill of the time led to stories that LeBron partially left the Cleveland Cavaliers in free agency for the Miami Heat due to his anger over that situation. West and James have never been publicly linked since that time frame.
Despite never confirming the relationship, West randomly referenced still speaking with Gloria James via a Kick stream:
“A lot of those guys that I play with, LeBron, he’s my ‘him’, and you know his family…called my mom all the time to make sure I’m okay. Miss James, Miss Gloria, she calls my mom, makes sure she’s still the same. ‘Tell your son I see him. He better get it together. Don’t make me come check on him.’”
West framed the relationship as being wholesome and Gloria providing a motherly caring vibe in his life from afar. However, this in itself creates more questions about if a relationship truly happened all those years ago. Not even LeBron’s close friends like Dwyane Wade or Chris Paul are casually name dropping his mother in interviews.
How Rumors Started About Delonte West & LeBron’s Mother
The end of the Cavaliers tenure confirmed that James was unhappy with something. Most assumed it was purely basketball since Cleveland failed to win a title in that timeline and often fell short vs LeBron’s rival Boston Celtics team of the era.
Rumors about West and Ms. James started to circulate that summer with some insiders revealing that something personal did upset LeBron during that season. Cleveland eventually did get LeBron back, but it came years later with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. West was notably distantly removed from the Cavaliers and unfortunately fizzled out of the league.
Various personal issues saw West becoming a scary situation of drug use harming one’s life. James has never spoken publicly about West nor the rumors involving his mother, but the current Philadelphia 76ers star was also named by West. Delonte tried to frame his relationship with both James’ family members as being positive.
NBA Legend Confirmed Shocking Rumors
One of the most random NBA personalities went out of his way to confirm that he knew the rumors were true. Houston Rockets legend Calvin Murphy cited that he found out about it too and was shocked.
The following Murphy quote came shortly after LeBron left Cleveland for Miami:
“It ain’t no rumor. Unfortunately, my sources in the NBA tell me that it’s absolutely true. My sources, and they’re legit, tell me the only people that didn’t know it was happening was LeBron and me.”
Murphy also added that he heard James found out about the alleged romance during the 2010 postseason series against Boston and ultimately quit. The series is remembered as a shocking one where LeBron folded under the pressure in the later games, with some pundits claiming he “quit” on the team.
Delonte West Shares Why He Still Speaks With LeBron’s Mother