The rumors surrounding Lamar Odom over the past week have surely alarmed many people who are close to him, one of who is his former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Pau Gasol. Early Tuesday morning, Gasol sent the following tweet:
I wish my friend @RealLamarOdom is doing well. All these rumors are really worrying me. Lamar is one of the best guys I've ever played with.
— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) August 27, 2013
The more reports we read, the more it sounds like Odom is in need of serious help. In its initial report, TMZ said Odom began using drugs two years ago after his cousin was murdered and he was involved in a car crash that killed a pedestrian. On Monday, another story from TMZ claimed Odom was using serious drugs while he played for both the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks.
While we don’t know the exact extent of Odom’s alleged drug use, we do know that there have been rumors that he is hooked on prescription pills and even crack. If that is true and his drug abuse dates back to his days with the Lakers and Mavericks, you would think the league’s drug testing policy would have picked up on it or his teammates would have noticed.
Whether the various reports wind up being true or not, I’m sure Gasol isn’t the only former teammate who is worried about Odom. Between the rumors about hardcore drugs and the incident where he blew up on the paparazzi, it seems obvious Odom could use some sort of help.
