Mark Cuban is a full service owner. Not only is he involved in roster construction and team traveling plans, the guy also helps the psychology of some of his players.
The Dallas Morning News reports that Cuban spent a while in the locker room before the Mavericks’ game against the Rockets Saturday giving a pep talk to Lamar Odom who was benched the night before. Cuban says the talk was nothing different from ones he’s had with other players who have gone through adverse times during their career.
Cuban wasn’t sure how the talk would work, but we can tell you Odom was scoreless in 12 minutes on 0-2 shooting, though he did grab two rebounds. What matters most to the Mavericks is that they won the game 101-99 in overtime. Coach Rick Carlisle also pointed out that the team hasn’t won a game when Odom didn’t play (they’re 0-6 without him). Even though that may be the case, they can’t be satisfied with Odom poor frame of mentality.
Photo Credit: Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE
