Khloe Kardashian » NBA Grapevine

Lamar Odom Trade Rumors: Latest Word on the Clippers, Lakers, Knicks and More

Jun 282012

After what can only be described as a tumultuous lost season with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011-12, forward Lamar Odom can’t get out of Texas soon enough.

His Mavs tenure ended with a deactivation after a heated confrontation with owner Mark Cuban during halftime of Dallas’ April 7 game against the Memphis Grizzlies.

While it’s no secret that Odom won’t be back with the team next season, there’s a question as to how he’ll be on the move.

A June 29 deadline looms on the Mavericks $2.4 million buyout option on Odom’s contract, though the team and Odom’s agent have talked about pushing that deadline back so that the Mavs can find a trade.

Regardless, the power forward’s market will be fluid over the coming days and weeks.

Since our goal here at B/R is to keep you ahead of the curve on all the latest rumors and buzz, we’ve created a tracker specifically for Odom and will be updating it with up-to-the-minute news as it breaks.

Clippers Are Interested in Odom, Lakers May Facilitate Deal by Acquiring Guard Mo Williams

According to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein, the Clippers, in recent days, have expressed strong interest bringing Odom back to the team that drafted him, but almost any deal hinges on a team picking up Williams’ $8.5 million price tag for next season.

With Williams coming off one of his best career seasons, sources tell Stein that multiple teams have inquired about the Clippers’ sixth man.

One of those teams is the Los Angeles Lakers, and, ironically enough, they would be using the trade exemption, which they gained in dealing Odom to Dallas, for Williams.

For the Clippers, they feel that a return to a comfortable environment is all Odom needs to regain his pre-Dallas form. And if that’s the case, the other Los Angeles team could get a massive steal here.

Lakers Unlikely to Be a Part of the Odom Sweepstakes

With the NBA unwilling to waive the new “one-year” return rule for traded players, the Lakers would have to wait until Dec. 11 to acquire their former sixth man.

And according to the Los Angeles Times, both sides seem unlikely to wait the six weeks necessary in order for Odom to make his return.

New York Is at the Top of Odom’s Wishlist

According to a source who spoke to ESPNNewYork.com’s Ian Begley, Odom’s first choice is to become a Knick:

“It definitely won’t be the fiasco that it was last year,” the Odom source said of the 13-year veteran’s approach to 2012-13. “He wants to find a place where he can end his career, and New York is ideal. He’s won championships in the past and he wants to win another. And to do it there would be great.”

Despite his love for the beach, Odom is a Queens native and has spent time in New York filming reality shows with his wife Khloe Kardashian in recent years.

Odom-to-New York is probably only possible in a buy-out situation, and that’s looking less likely by the minute.

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LA Lakers: Why Lamar Odom Should Not Return to Los Angeles

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Jun 192012

Lamar Odom struggled like none other in the 2011-2012 season, mentally, emotionally and physically. Which is why the Los Angeles Lakers should not pick him back up.

Odom averaged 6.6 points and 4.1 rebounds a game as a Dallas Maverick last season. That is significantly down from his 14.4 points and 8.6 rebounds a game average the previous season with the Lakers.

It was evident that Odom was never committed to playing as a Maverick. His production and effort was so useless, that the Mavericks thought it would be better if he stayed away from the team.

A big reason why the Lakers should not pursue Odom is because he was the one that wanted out. Once the Chris Paul trade was originally a go, Odom and Pau Gasol were clearly crushed that they were leaving and that is understandable. However, when the trade was then blocked, Odom was not able to restore his motivation to play as a Laker.

Odom asked to be traded because he felt like he was not wanted. Gasol felt the same pain, but he was able to hang in there and remain with the organization. Gasol was able to average 17 points and 10 boards throughout the swirling trade rumors all season. Gasol has a bad reputation for being soft, but that showed his toughness mentally. Mental toughness that Odom did not display when times got rough.

Odom’s lack of mental toughness was a recurring theme throughout the season. He never was able to work and find his role with the Mavericks all season. At one point he was sent down to the D-League to play so he could “get his legs back.” When has a former Sixth Man of the Year ever been demoted to the D-League the very next year?

Another concern for the Lakers to consider is this: Does Odom really want to be in Los Angeles to be a Laker or to be a reality TV star? His reality show with his wife, Khloe Kardashian could be a distraction and just add to the circus the Lakers already have in town. Metta World Peace and Andrew Bynum already cause enough media attention throughout the season, do they really want more controversy?

Odom will be 33 years old at the beginning of next season. It is hard to expect a veteran at that age to return back to his old self after coming off the worst season of his career. If Odom were able to revive his career in a Lakers uniform, it would be a miracle.

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NBA Rumors: Lamar Odom Shouldn’t Get His Hopes Up for USA Basketball

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May 042012

Lamar Odom had a rough season this year, trying to transition from one team to another only to never amount to much success, which is exactly why he shouldn’t be vying for a spot on team USA.

According to Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports, Odom has expressed a great deal of interest for being on the team, but it’s not certain as to whether or not he’ll make it.

FOX Sports Florida had reported a source close to USA Basketball saying Lamar Odom would not be considered to be on the final Olympic team. However, Jerry Colangelo said Odom reached out to USA Basketball and told them how much he wanted to be on the Olympics. So he remains in the mix and will be invited to camp. However, it still remains unlikely Odom will make the final roster.

With recent injuries to some big men, Colangelo and the rest of the Team USA staff have to fill some holes, which could give Odom a shot at making the roster.

However, given how bad this year was for Odom, he shouldn’t get his hopes up. There’s nothing wrong with him wanting to be on the team, but with a small chance of making it, Odom would be better off just sitting at home and making more reality shows with Khloe Kardashian.

It’s sad that I admitted that, but it’s essentially what Odom’s life has become now. His basketball skills trended way down this year, and his reality television talents continue to go up.

I understand Odom’s logic behind all of this. He wants to play for his country and try to redeem the pitiful season he had with the Dallas Mavericks. It was such a down year he didn’t even stick with the team for the entire season. He just had to get away.

You have to love his enthusiasm for wanting to play, reaching out to the team’s head honcho like that. Unfortunately, Odom has lost his touch for the moment, and trying to find it while playing with Team USA isn’t the best move for him or for the team.

Odom’s chances of making Team USA’s roster are thin, so hopefully he isn’t banking on playing basketball in London this summer because it probably won’t happen.

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Lamar Odom and Khloe Kardashian Canceling TV Show Is Right Move for Odom

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Apr 302012

If Lamar Odom is serious about continuing his NBA career, he needs to dedicate himself completely to the game and not any outside business ventures that he or Khloe Kardashian have lined up. That is why it is good to hear that the power couple are ending their reality show on E!

According to TMZ, the second season of the Khloe & Lamar will be the last because Odom wants to get back to doing what he did best, at least before being traded to Dallas before the NBA season started in December.

But we’re told Lamar is determined to make a comeback — and he feels he should focus on only one project. Lamar will be living in L.A. full-time and he’s hired trainers to help him get his game back.

According to sources, Khloe and Lamar WILL make occasional appearances on the reality mother ship,”Keeping Up with the Kardashians” — but that’s it. No mas.

While it is surprising to hear a Kardashian would be willing to give up a reality show, it is a testament to Odom’s desire to continue playing the sport he loves that he would walk away from it.

NBA franchises don’t want to sign a player whose life is going to be wrapped up in what he is doing in front of a reality show camera and the court.

After the disaster that was the Dallas Mavericks experiment, Odom has to prove to everyone around the NBA that he really wants to keep playing and can be a valuable asset.

One of the biggest problems he has faced throughout his career is his attitude. He was happy in Los Angeles, so when the Lakers tried to trade him to Houston before the season he was upset.

Then when the Mavericks swooped in to get him, Odom never even tried to ingratiate himself to that team because he wanted to play for the Lakers. While I am not saying it is wrong to have emotions, he has to understand this is a business and that’s how things work.

Getting rid of all the pomp and circumstance of a reality television show and dedicating himself to the game he used to be really good at is the only way Odom has a chance to find a job before the 2012-13 NBA season.

Good for Odom for recognizing that and doing everything he can to make it happen.

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Lamar Odom’s Father Says Khloe Kardashian Is Pregnant

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Apr 172012

Lamar Odom is back in the news, this time with absolutely nothing to do with his failing basketball career.

According to the staff at RumorFix, Joe Odom—Lamar’s father—“broke news” that the former Dallas Maverick and his wife, Khloe Kardashian, are going to have a baby.

Joe and Lamar do not have the best relationship and it’s been known that the source of these rumors has had a heroin problem for some time now.

Adding to the doubt that this rumor is true, Khloe’s people have reportedly denied the allegations that she is pregnant.

However, Lamar and his father did spend a lot of time together recently and Odom took a leave of absence from the team when his dad had food poisoning in February.

It’s also been known for a while that the couple has been trying to have a child.

“I know he’s excited,” Joe said of his 32-year-old son. “They’ve been trying to do this for a couple of years. We’re all excited.”

“Ain’t nothing but a newborn thoroughbred,” he told RumorFix. “This is all lamb chop baby!”

It would be the two-time NBA champion’s fourth child. He has three others with Liza Morales, his former fiancé.

The distraction of his wife’s pregnancy going public via his pops may not be the best thing for Lamar right now.

Odom was just dismissed from the Mavericks (although he is still being paid) and will have to work hard this offseason to find a team that will take a gamble on him.

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Lamar Odom and the Dallas Mavericks "Part Ways"

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Apr 102012

Lamar Odom and the Dallas Mavericks are no longer together, well, sort of.

This addition of BR5+ looks at the story, and speculates as to what could have caused this experiment in Dallas to fail. Who is to blame? BR5+ says it could be Odom for not buying in to being a Maverick, the Lakers for dangling him in a trade, or Khloe Kardashian, for being a Kardashian.

Odom’s side of the story went a little like this:

“The Mavericks and I have mutually agreed that it’s in the best interest of both parties for me to step away from the team,” Odom said Monday in a statement to ESPN.com.

“I’m sorry that things didn’t work out better for both of us, but I wish the Mavs’ organization, my teammates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defense of their championship.”

The Mavericks apparently intend to list him as inactive for the rest for the season, and they owe Odom the remainder of his $8.9 Million salary this season.

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Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom: Cryptic Tweets Met with Bizarre Backlash

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Apr 102012

Shortly after the Mavericks placed Lamar Odom on the inactive list for the rest of the season, Khloe Kardashian had something to say about it.

Or did she?

According to ESPNDallas.com’s Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein, Odom and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban had an angry exchange in the visitor’s locker room at halftime during Saturday’s eventual loss to Memphis. That exchange was allegedly “the culmination” of a strained relationship between Odom and the team, and it led to discussions on Easter that resulted in Odom being placed on the inactive list.

The team decided not to release Odom outright because it still hopes to trade him at season’s end.

On Monday afternoon, Kardashian sent the following tweet, assumed to be about Odom:

U deserve so much better. Know ur worth and know ur skills that have been proven and earned! U showed ur strength, I love u.

— KhloéKardashianOdom (@KhloeKardashian) April 9, 2012

After a backlash, however, Kardashian insisted that her tweet was not meant to target anyone in particular—i.e., Odom—but was simply meant to be an expression of encouragement to her 6.5 million followers.

Just a few minutes after the first message, she tweeted the following:

Peps want 2assume they know. My last tweet was 4me and not for any1 else. I always send out encouraging tweets but 2day I get backlash? Odd

— KhloéKardashianOdom (@KhloeKardashian) April 9, 2012

Whether or not the tweet was truly innocuous or meant to be a message of solidarity to her husband—and let’s be honest, it was probably the latter—who cares? Is it a surprise for her to side with Odom over the Mavericks in this case?

It’s not like she was standing at an elevator, swearing about the ineptitude of her husband’s teammates, while television cameras stood idly by.

Odom, who was traded from the Lakers to the Mavericks in a salary dump in December, has made little attempt to disguise his displeasure over the deal, and it showed on the court. In 50 games, he averaged 6.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.4 blocks and 1.7 assists per game, well below his career averages in every category.

When he was traded, he and Khloe had to move their popular reality TV show from L.A. to Dallas, a move Khloe seemed to support.

Now that they’re leaving, she’s just doing the same thing. Supporting.

I never thought I’d see the day, but I’m going to have to agree with Khloe on this one and ask, why the backlash?

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Thankfully, Mavs No Longer Have to Keep Up with the Kardashians, or Odom

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Apr 092012

For the sake of everyone involved, I hope the producers of Keeping Up With the Kardashians got what they needed for their little reality show.

The Dallas Mavericks‘ form of a reality show has finally been cancelled, and not even through one season on television. Good thing they pulled the plug, because it was getting ugly. Jersey Shore meets The Bachelor kind of ugly

Whether the Mavs want to list him as “inactive” for the rest of the year or just plain release him, Lamar Odom’s tenure on the defending NBA Champions has finally come to an end, rather abruptly.

ESPN.com’s Marc Stein reported that Dallas and Odom both agreed to part ways for the rest of the year, sending the former sixth man of the year home with no intention on bringing him back.

Sorry, Khloe, but your little “Lam Lam” is no longer a waste of space on the Mavs bench.

Back in December this was meant to be a match made in heaven. Dallas got Odom basically for nothing from the Los Angeles Lakers, who were trying to move him after he showed displeasure of possibly being traded in the prior Chris Paul deal that would’ve sent CP3 to the Lakers.

Fast forward four months and if you were to predict that Odom would post career lows at just over six points and four rebounds, you might’ve hit the lottery with the luck you possess.

Obviously, a repeat at a championship was highly unlikely regardless of what happened to the Mavs this year. It wasn’t until Dallas signed Vince Carter and made the deal for Odom that the noise started to build for the defending champs to get back to the finals.

Now, whether or not Dallas will make a miraculous run at another championship, Odom will sit at home and continue to make millions, just by being married to Khloe Kardashian. Talk about a life that everyone would want to have.

For someone who was labeled as one of the best reserve players in the league for a long time, Odom showed absolutely no heart or energy for the majority of time he took the court. He showed some flashes for maybe one or two games, but he just looked like someone who was lost in everything he did on the floor.

Is it possible to blame it on the condensed season? Sure, if you want to. If you want to be one of the lone few who back him for that regard, please do so. You won’t get much support there. If Dirk Nowitzki was averaging only 12 points a game this year, then maybe that would be the case.

But for someone who said he was happy to be in Dallas and vowed to play hard from the start, he showed little effort and determination on the court, and this is what he gets for his efforts.

As for the Mavs going forward, they’ve finally removed their biggest headache. They no longer have to worry about Odom taking time off whenever he feels like it, and for whatever reason that will more than likely never be disclosed.

Does this mean that Dallas is going to start playing better and win more games? Probably not, because they have more problems at the moment than some reality star. But the locker room is probably jumping for joy this morning before practice, knowing that this could be the last day anybody on the team will field any questions regarding Odom.

And as he eloquently put it in a statement, ”I’m sorry that things didn’t work out better for both of us, but I wish the Mavs’ organization, my teammates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defense of their championship.”

Yeah, everyone else is sorry too, Lamar. Everyone’s sorry for the shell of a basketball player that you’ve become.

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Dallas Mavericks: Will Lamar Odom Turn His Slow Start Around Anytime Soon?

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Jan 162012

Mavericks swingman Lamar Odom came to Dallas a few weeks ago as the team’s biggest offseason acquisition. Unfortunately for Dallas fans, though, Odom has yet to make much of an impact for his new team this season.

Last year with the Lakers, Odom averaged around 14 points and nine rebounds per game, en route to winning the NBA‘s Sixth Man of the Year award. Yet so far this season with the Mavs, Odom is only averaging about seven points and five rebounds per game, which would both easily be career lows for him.

Many thought Odom would finally get his chance to be a consistent starter once he arrived in Texas, but so far he’s only been seeing 20 or so minutes of floor time each game, also a career low.

So why is Odom not living up to all of the hype in Dallas?

He’s still in his prime at only 32, so age probably isn’t the reason.

Earlier in the offseason, Odom was going to be part of the three-way trade that would have sent Chris Paul to LA, before commissioner David Stern vetoed the transaction.

After a successful seven years with the Lakers, it must have been upsetting for Odom to realize that the team saw him as expendable. The idea became even more apparent to him when Los Angeles finalized the deal to ship Odom out to Dallas, the team that swept them in last season’s playoffs.

It’s always tough to start anew with another team, especially when there are only a matter of days to prepare for opening day. Odom quickly had to get to know his new teammates and coaches, as well as a whole new system both offensively and defensively.

However, the Mavericks are now 13 games into the season, and a new scheme cannot be used as an excuse for him anymore. In all 13 appearances, Odom has reached double-figures just once, coming against a mediocre Phoenix Suns team on January 4.

It seems Odom’s mind is not solely focused on basketball, as it should be.

Odom had a rough July in 2011. That month, he went through a series of traumatic events. He lost his 24-year-old cousin, who was apparently brutally murdered. The day after his cousin’s funeral, an SUV that Odom was riding in collided with a teenage motorcyclist, resulting in the boy’s immediate death.

Obviously affected by such a stressful July, Odom told ESPN that he was close to taking at least a year off from basketball, as he tried to cope with the amount of death he had been around recently.

According to Odom, if it were not for the help of a few of his close friends and wife Khloe Kardashian, he wouldn’t be playing the game he loves at all this season.

“My wife talked me out of it,” Odom told ESPN. “Cause I was asking myself: ‘Was I mentally prepared to play? If I didn’t play well, was I mentally prepared to help the team?’ I had thought, ‘Maybe I need a year.’”

Unfortunately for the Dallas Mavericks, it seems as if Odom is not mentally prepared to help the team, nor is he physically prepared. Dallas coach Rick Carlisle has voiced his displeasure with Odom’s physical shape, after coming off of the court severely winded on multiple occasions.

Hopefully for the Dallas Mavericks and their fanbase, Odom can get out of this slump, and fast.

The first thing that needs to happen is a drastic improvement in his cardiovascular strength. The Mavericks surely need more than just 20 minutes out of their biggest offseason acquisition. With more minutes will come more productivity, as long as Odom is in good shape. It’s still quite possible that he could beat out Shawn Marion for the starting small forward role, if he plays his cards right.

Second, Odom must get his head on straight. Instead of dwelling on all of his recent misfortunes, he needs to use them as motivation to improve his game. With his productivity at an all-time low, all of his focus should be on playing basketball for the Dallas Mavericks, and not “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

Odom has all of the skills to be a tremendous force on the court in Dallas this season, but if he can’t get it together mentally for his new team this season, it would be a shock to see the Mavericks bring him back for their 2012-13 campaign.

With the Mavericks set to take on the Lakers at the Staples Center tomorrow, a return to Hollywood may be just what Odom needs to begin to break out of this slump.

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NBA Rumors: Lamar Odom Smart to Take Solace in the Game He Loves

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Jan 152012

Current Dallas Maverick and former Los Angeles Laker Lamar Odom apparently almost walked away from the NBA, but thanks to advice from family and his wife Khloe Kardashian, he chose to stick with the game he loved.

He couldn’t have made a better decision.

There are points in all of our lives where we feel like giving up. We’ve all dealt with pressure and heartache, and some of us have experienced some of the most heart-wrenching losses a person would ever have to bear.

Nobody reading this is except from the trails of life, so I’m pretty sure everybody knows and understands what Odom was feeling.

According to the report from Marc Stein of ESPN, Odom was taking the murder of his 24-year-old cousin and the death of a pedestrian in a car accident he was in very hard—and who could blame him for that?

Stein reports that Odom almost decided to take a year-long sabbatical from the NBA:

My wife talked me out of it.

‘Cause I was asking myself: “Was I mentally prepared to play? If I didn’t play well, was I mentally prepared to help the team?” I had thought, “Maybe I need a year.” Because of the lockout, I thought, ‘Maybe somebody’s sending me a sign that I needed this time off.’

(But) when I told some of my friends and my family that I was thinking about steppin’ back for a minute, I think the reaction from the closest people to me kind of gave me the energy to get back at it.

This was a smart move on Odom’s part, and I give kudos to his family and wife for helping him overcome his doubts and return to the NBA.

There’s a time and a place for everything, and had Odom decided that he needed time to reflect on life without the rigors of the NBA, I don’t think anybody would have blamed him.

That being said, the beautiful thing about sports is that they can be therapeutic. The same could be said for doing something you love.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I think Odom loves the game of basketball, and playing it at such a high level may go a ways in helping him figure things out.

Everybody needs an escape, especially a healthy one.

Odom gets to play the game he loves and get paid very well to do so. Personally, I can’t think of anything better for a high-level athlete.

I wouldn’t have blamed him had he taken some time off, but I think he made the right decision.

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