Stephon Marbury is the latest NBA player, past or present, to suggest that issues of mental health troubled him during his career. He told HBO that as his career was unravelling six years ago, he thought of killing himself. He received a diagnosis of depression.
It was in 2010 that Ron Artest thanked his psychiatrist after he and the Lakers won an NBA title. Royce White, the top draft pick by the Houston Rockets in 2012, was diagnosed with anxiety as a child, has a fear of flying and never played for the team.
An NBA career has to be stressful, and in particular for those who enjoyed success for several years, as did Marbury. The period when he considered suicide came after his father died, his “Starbury” shoe line was flopping and no NBA team wanted him. That is an end-of-career arc not uncommon in the league.
In Marbury’s case, it was exacerbated by playing for the New York Knicks, whose fans are difficult to please at the best of times.
His life changed when his agent found him a team in China, where he has rebuilt his career. He helped the Beijing Ducks to a league title last year.
Going where he was unknown was key, he said. “To be told that you’re a loser, that you can’t win … Then to come some place without speaking the language with the cultural barriers, to be able to accomplish that, that goal was, is beyond anything.”
Mental health issues are real, and the NBA has its shares of sufferers. The league could do more to help players cope.
poberjuerge@thenational.ae
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