Starting in March 2027, Delonte West will once again receive money tied to his NBA career. After more than a decade away from the NBA 2K series, his likeness has been restored to the latest edition of the popular video game, bringing with it licensing payments for the use of his name and image.
For most retired players, this would probably not attract much attention. West’s case is very different because of everything that has happened since his playing career ended. A former teammate of LeBron James who earned at least $16,232,536 from NBA contracts, West spent years dealing with mental health issues and addiction, lost most of his money, went through rehabilitation programs and arrests, while the basketball public watched photos and videos of him living on the streets.
NBA 2K Is Giving West a New Source of Basketball Income
NBA 2K is now bringing him back to the game for the first time since NBA 2K14. West shared a message he received regarding his return. According to the information made public, the company is expected to contact him in January for the details needed to set up direct deposits and complete a W-9 tax form, with licensing payments scheduled to begin in March 2027. The amount he will receive has not been disclosed, but the significance is primarily that West will once again have income directly connected to his NBA career.
It is not known, however, whether 2K made the decision as a way to help West, and the company has offered no such explanation. His return has a practical reason within the structure of NBA 2K27, which was released on September 4.
His Return Also Fits the Structure of NBA 2K27
Visual Concepts significantly expanded the historical portion of the game for the new edition. MyCAREER now allows players to begin their careers in five different NBA eras, starting in 1984 and running through the modern period. One of them is the “LeBron Era”, which begins in 2010, with rosters, transactions, rules and player movement adapted to the actual periods of NBA history. West’s return fits into the effort to make those historical rosters as complete as possible. Several other former NBA players who had been absent from the game in recent years have also returned.
Boston selected West with the 24th pick in the 2004 NBA Draft. He played for the Celtics, Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers and Dallas Mavericks, finishing his NBA career with 432 games, including 258 starts. He averaged 9.7 points, 3.6 assists and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 37.2 percent from three. His best seasons came in Boston and Cleveland, where he was an important part of the team built around LeBron James.
What Happened Later Overshadowed the Player He Had Been
The problem is that what happened later in West’s life almost completely overshadowed the player he once was. West spoke publicly about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2008, although he later expressed some uncertainty about the way he had accepted that diagnosis. His problems did not begin after his professional career ended. In a lengthy Washington Post profile published in 2015, he discussed mental health struggles dating back to adolescence, including suicide attempts. During the 2011 NBA lockout, he applied for a job at Home Depot and worked at a furniture store despite having already earned millions of dollars playing basketball.
Things became increasingly difficult after his NBA career ended. He tried to work his way back through the developmental league and China, but an NBA return never came. Photos began appearing of him barefoot and disoriented, followed by reports that he was asking for money on the street, while financial, health and legal problems continued to pile up.
A photo from 2020 perhaps best illustrates how far his life had moved from an NBA court. West was seen on the side of a road in Dallas holding a cardboard sign. After trying for several days to reach him, Mark Cuban managed to make contact, found him at a gas station, took him to a hotel and offered to pay for his rehabilitation. A few weeks later, Cuban posted a photo of West from the treatment center and said he had taken the first steps, but still had a long road ahead.
The Relapses Showed How Difficult Recovery Would Be
The years that followed showed just how difficult that road would be. West continued to have problems with the law and addiction. In June 2024, police in Virginia found him unresponsive after attempting to arrest him for violating conditions tied to a previous release. He was given Narcan, a medication used in suspected opioid overdoses, but did not respond to the first dose. He was taken to a hospital, where he received another.
In November 2025, he was again found unresponsive and heavily intoxicated. Police took him into custody for his own safety after he refused to go to a hospital. Only a few weeks later, another incident followed. West was arrested in Virginia on December 21 on assault and robbery charges. According to reports at the time, only $23 was allegedly taken. He was released on $1,000 bond, and his attorney said he then entered a treatment facility.
It is difficult to find a better illustration of how far he had fallen. West earned more than $16 million in NBA salary, then years later appeared in a police report over an alleged robbery involving $23.
A Player’s Name Can Retain Value Long After His Career Ends
For professional athletes, their name, likeness and what they accomplished during their careers can remain valuable long after their final game. Former NBA players receive payments through different licensing arrangements when their names and likenesses are used in commercial products, including video games. West had been outside that system for years, during a period when any stable source of income could have mattered.
NBA 2K27 now gives him at least a small part of that value back. It does not erase what happened to him or guarantee that his problems are behind him. West’s story has already included several moments that appeared to mark the beginning of a recovery, only to be followed by new setbacks. In recent months, however, there have been more encouraging signs. West said in March that he had spent 100 days without alcohol or drugs, while more recent public appearances have shown him in noticeably better condition than in the footage that had concerned the basketball community in previous years.
This Should Not Be Turned Into a Redemption Story Yet
For that reason, his return to a video game should not be turned into a story of miraculous salvation. Delonte West needs stability, treatment and continuity far more than he needs a place on a virtual roster. Still, 2K’s decision carries a value that cannot be measured entirely by the size of the payments he will receive.
For much of the past decade, the public saw West through videos of arrests, panhandling and life on the streets. For a generation that never watched him play alongside LeBron in Cleveland, his name could have become associated more with the tragedy of a former athlete than with a player who spent eight years in the best basketball league in the world.
Now he will have another opportunity to change how people see him and reclaim some of his dignity.