LeBron James' mother of a sex scandal

Rumor has it that the Cleveland Cavaliers star's mom had an affair with his teammate Delonte West

Published May 17, 2010 10:01PM (EDT)

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James listens to a question during a news conference after losing 94-85 to the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series, Thursday, May 13, 2010, in Boston.  With no title again for Cleveland this year, James will have to decide if it's time to go look for it elsewhere.(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)    (AP)
Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James listens to a question during a news conference after losing 94-85 to the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series, Thursday, May 13, 2010, in Boston. With no title again for Cleveland this year, James will have to decide if it's time to go look for it elsewhere.(AP Photo/Charles Krupa) (AP)

The sports world is blowing up with a rumor that LeBron James' poor performance last week against the Boston Celtics can be blamed on mommy issues -- more specifically, mommy-sleeping-with-a-teammate issues. Word is that the Cleveland Cavaliers star found out that his 41-year-old mother, Gloria, had been having an affair with 26-year-old Delonte West just before game time, and some are predicting the upset will push him to leave the team.

However, the gossip remains just that and the Jameses have yet to make any comment on it. Just looking at the story as pure folklore, though, it's pretty fascinating -- the betrayal by a man who is supposed to be, literally, on your side, the resulting emasculation and, hello, inability to perform. It's almost Shakespearean. Then there is the element of female sexuality as both generative (she's his mother!) and destructive (she ruined his game!). Add the age difference between James and her supposed lover -- cougar alert! -- and you've got pure tabloid gold. Unfortunately, it looks like this story won't be going away any time soon.


By Tracy Clark-Flory

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