Delonte West Continues To Be The Most Interesting Man In The NBA

My love for Boston Celtics guard Delonte West has been well-chronicled. There are very few pro athletes these days that I'd want to meet, let alone have a beer with (or in this case probably a 40 of Steel Reserve) but West is such a unique person that I think a chance encounter with him is something you would remember for the rest of your life.

His latest adventure is that he was hired by Regency Furniture Showrooms, a furniture chain in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. West posted pictures on his Twitter account from his first day of work.

On his application, West checked "Yes" when asked if he had ever been convicted of a crime. For the explanation, West simply answered with, "Misunderstanding."

West was arrested on Sept. 17, 2009, after police found guns in a guitar case on his three-wheeled motorcycle. West pleaded guilty to traffic and weapons charges in July, 2010.

Regency, which sells "living room, dining room, kitchen, office and bedroom furniture, along with mattress and accessories," according to its official website, was the latest employment target for West during the lockout.

In August, West tweeted that he was applying for a job at Home Depot. West also told TrueHoop's Adam Reisinger in August he applied to Sam's Club.

"I actually might have work with Sam's (Club), BJ's, selling knives," West said. "That's pretty cool too. I get a microphone and everything."

You have to give him credit; rather than risk injury playing basketball overseas, he's taken a blue-collar job in the states to support his family and continue to earn a paycheck during the uncertain times of the NBA Lockout. Do you think there's one other player in the NBA that would even contemplate doing that for even one day? Answer: probably not.

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E'Twaun Moore, Coming To An Italian Basketball Court Near You

Well it's finally happened. One of the Boston Celtics has committed to playing overseas during the NBA lockout.

Haha but fear not folks since it's not Rajon Rondo or any of the Big 3 taking their talents to Europe. Rather, it's rookie guard E'Twaun Moore, who probably has a much better chance of building a respectable career in Italy than bouncing around between the NBA and D-League stateside.

The deal that he signed with Benetton Treviso, a team in Italy's Lega Serie A, has an opt-out clause that would allow him to return to the Celts should the lockout end during his time abroad.

A young man's gotta eat and make a living so I applaud him (or his agent) for having the ingenuity to pack up and get out of town since the NBA appears nowhere close to a settlement.

From ESPNBoston.com's Chris Forsberg
"It's a great situation for E'Twaun," Moore's agent, Mark Bartelstein, said. "Treviso is a terrific team that plays top European competition and, if the lockout ends, there's an option to terminate the contract -- a small window of time -- so we'll just see what happens.

"It's an exciting chance for him to play -- play at a high level -- and make some money in a great environment."

The former Purdue star is expected to go to Italy by Aug. 15, before the team starts training camp for its 2011-12 season. In a perfect world, he'll play well and the NBA will get back to business on schedule. However, as everyone should know by now this world is far from perfect so likely one or both of those things won't happen.

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The 2011-12 Boston Celtics Schedule That Most Likely Won't Happen

I'll never be confused with ESPN's Chris Broussard (LeBRONNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) or Adam Schefter so that's my excuse for why I couldn't care less about NBA or NFL Lockout talk. Still, sources close to the situations seem to think the NFL will come to an agreement any day now while the NBA will likely miss some if not all of the 2011-12 season.

The fact that PTI's Michael Wilbon scoffed at the NBA releasing its entire schedule today during a lockout, makes me less than enthused about seeing who the Boston Celtics will "play." After all, who's more dialed in than Wilbon?

Without further ado, here's the 2011-12 Celtics schedule that probably won't happen.

Boston opens up against the Cleveland Cavaliers on November 2 at TD Garden. Not exactly the marquee opening night matchup, even with Cleveland's top picks (Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson) in the 2011 Draft.

12 of the Celtics' first 19 games are on the road and they'll have 24 nationally televised games (ABC, ESPN and TNT) with six more on NBA TV.

Boston's longest homestand is six games: January 16-27 vs. OKC, Denver, Phoenix, Orlando, Minnesota and Indiana. Their longest road trip is five games and as usual, it's after the All-Star break. From March 11-17 they'll visit the Lakers, Suns, Warriors, Kings and Nuggets.

Some other games that standout above the rest: November 16 is Boston's first meeting with the Miami Heat (in Miami) followed by a game in Orlando the next night. December 1 is the first home game against the Heat. The C's have a home and home with the Knicks on December 22 in Boston and on Christmas afternoon in NYC (because nothing says Christmas spirit like Spike Lee).

Boston hosts the World Champion Dallas Mavericks on January 11. Kendrick Perkins returns to town with the Oklahoma City Thunder on January 16. The first Celtics-Lakers game is February 9 at TD Garden. The Celts host Tom Thibodeau and the Bulls on February 12. The Celtics have a brutal four-game road trip in mid-February: Bulls (February 16), Rockets (February. 19), Dallas (February 20) and Oklahoma City (February 22).

The Celts visit the Staples Center on March 11 and San Antonio on March 25. April starts with three tough games in five days: vs. Miami (April 1), vs. Spurs (April 4) and at Bulls (April 5). According to Donald Sterns-thanks Mumbles Menino-Boston's regular season will end with games in New York (April 17) and the finale April 18 at TD Garden vs. the Magic but we'll believe it when we see it.

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Delonte West Will Freestyle Over Wiz Khalifa And You Will Be Captivated

In this age of reality shows on every station and pseudo celebrities cashing in daily, can we agree that some people are too real for reality tv? Boston Celtics guard Delonte West is a perfect example of such a character from our local pro sports market.

Whether he's banging LeBron's mom, riding on his motorcycle with a gun in a guitar case or occasionally playing basketball, D-West is always entertaining and one of a kind.

It's easy to make fun of West's well-publicized problems but if anything, I can relate to the guy much more than most other pro athletes because his life is unvarnished. Not to get all sappy on you but nobody's life is perfect (despite what ESPN will tell you) and West's battles with bipolar disorder and substance abuse are part of the vulnerability that makes him human.

You can appreciate West because he seems more like you or somebody you know than most of his teammates or other players in the NBA that appear cartoonish (Dwight Howard) or like superheros (Dwyane Wade).



The NBA Lockout has only just begun but already a video of Delonte freestyling over a Wiz Khalifa song has surfaced on worldstarhiphop.com

Keep on keepin' on D-West, you are truly the man.

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