Lakers forward Lamar Odom was the subject of a trade report Thursday afternoon, and he was heartbroken at the thought of being forced to leave Los Angeles.
Odom and Pau Gasol were traded from the Lakers to the Hornets for Chris Paul in a deal that was also supposed to involve the Houston Rockets. The league canceled the trade at the urging of several owners, but it may still go through at a later date. If that happens, you can count on Lamar to be pretty disconsolate.
During an interview on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles Thursday, Odom was nearly in tears when discussing the trade.
“You’re always going to be stunned and shocked,” Lamar said. “Sometimes you’re going to ask ‘how did I fall?'”
Odom was disappointed that the Lakers were “treating him like a number.” He referenced a dream he had where he walked into training camp and his teammates were laughing. He even began speculating on reasons why they were trading him.
“Maybe I rubbed people the wrong way. Maybe it was doing the [reality] show.”
Odom, completely saddened and lost, admitted he was guessing at reasons. Maybe someone should just tell him that Chris Paul and Dwight Howard are younger, better players than what the Lakers have right now. It’s not about what he did wrong as much as it is about injecting new life into the organization.
Whatever happens, you’re going to have to pry Odom away from Hollywood.
“My family is here. LA’s a part of me — for more than one reason,” he explained. “Everywhere I go, people show me a lot of love. I love the fans and who I was able to play in front of. The people, the connections, going to movie premiers … it’s been a great rise, a great story.”
Here is audio of his appearance on the show:
[audio:https://larrybrownsports.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lamar-odom-part-1.mp3|titles=lamar odom part 1]
[audio:https://larrybrownsports.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lamar-odom-part-2.mp3|titles=lamar odom part 2]
Thanks to Mentality Magazine for the heads up.
