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After being arrested in 2013 for driving under the influence of drugs and losing much of his fitness, Odom tried to relaunch his career in Europe, although the experience lasted only a few weeks. Hanga revealed a striking scene from one of the team's away games: " Someone told me that when we went to play in Valencia, he (Odom) didn't like the TV in the room, so he went to buy a bigger one at MediaMarkt and then left it there . He was a millionaire, of course."
Lamar Odom formally reached a deal with prosecutors this week to close out his DUI case. Court records viewed by The California Post on Thursday show the former Los Angeles Lakers star pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of DUI of alcohol and/or controlled or prohibited substance, first offense at a hearing in Las Vegas on Tuesday, and in exchange, officials dismissed the speeding and improper lane change charges he had been facing. Following Odom’s plea, a judge ruled the DUI charge will be amended to a reckless driving count if he completes a laundry list of conditions over the next three months.
Former NBA star Lamar Odom is expected to enter a plea deal in a DUI case in Las Vegas, according to his defense attorney. Odom, 46, was arrested Jan. 17 and later charged with driving under the influence, speeding and failure to stay in a driving lane. He pleaded not guilty in March.
Odom plans to enter a no-contest plea that will reduce his initial DUI charge to a reckless driving charge, according to his attorney, Michael Becker. Through a no-contest plea, Odom will accept the terms of the Clark County District Attorney's Office without admitting guilt. He was scheduled for a bench trial Tuesday in Las Vegas Justice Court, but the court hearing was continued for a plea entry later this month.
Former NBA star Lamar Odom is celebrating 100 days sober — sharing an uplifting message with his nearly 1 million Instagram followers. “There are days I don’t think I could make it,” the former Lakers star wrote Thursday. “But with God’s grace, the love of the people around me, and a commitment to myself, I’m still standing.”
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Lamar Odom: I went to Miami one year and linked up with Kobe Bryant back with the Lakers in a trade. I could had avoided the trade honestly, I didn't have to go, but to go back to Los Angeles and be a Laker, and play with Kobe? I couldn't pass down on that. Q. It seemed like it was a call from Kobe, that's the thing that really made the deal happen, made you go back over to the West Coast and become a Laker. Odom: Yeah. I mean, I've known Kobe before he went to the NBA. We had the same kind of representatives from Adidas. He was Adidas before he was Nike. And Kobe, if you knew him even in 12th grade or before he made it to the NBA, you knew it was something special about him. You know he wanted ‘it’, whatever ‘it’ is to those NBA players out there. He wanted to be better than Michael Jordan. And in some people's eyes, he almost came close.
Jalen Brunson: Can you talk about the battles with the Lakers in the playoffs? Like it was like what two or three years in a row, maybe four. Amare Stoudemire: Yeah, it was tough, man. Cuz with Kobe you can't really game plan for him, right? We have a scouting report for Kobe and like try to contain force him to his left. We send a double team from the baseline. If he's in the post or from the top, we send we send a double team from the wing, if he catches the ball center court, top of the key. Other than that, Kobe knew how to avoid all double teams. He knew he had all the counter moves for every double team that may come his way. So, we really couldn't stop Kobe. We had all we can do is try to contain him, make it tough for him, get into his body on his shot. Small little details help maybe help change his shot a bit. And then for me, I had a battle also, one year got to go against Shaq. It was Shaq and Kobe. And then Shaq left and then we took over. Phoenix took over the West and then somehow they got Pau Gasol and then they got Andrew Bynum and then they had Lamar Odom. So I'm on the inside playing small as a five. Got to guard Lamar Odom who is 6-10. Got to guard Andrew Bynum at 7-1 and Pau is 7-1. And it's me on the inside.
What made now the right time to tell your full story with Untold: The Life and Death of Lamar Odom? Lamar Odom: “Well, the secret Netflix had a good paycheck, bro (laughs)," Odom said. "No, but it's a time and place for everything. I don't know what made me relevant now. “I thought it was something that I had totally, totally gotten past. But I understand that, me being a Laker and the first black Kardashian, always have some relevance here in America. “And so, would not be a better time to tell my truth. You know what I mean? A lot of people probably had it misunderstood and thought that a drug addict went to the brothel one night and bought a big bag of cocaine and overdosed. I was living in Vegas, and I didn't make the connection. I didn't have a cocaine connection yet. And so, that was, I considered it as a hit. “So, still some trauma that comes along with that, too, because, oh, they're going to come back. Do I need to sleep with the gun under my pillow?”
Are you saying it was a hit on you? Someone tried to kill you? Lamar Odom: “I mean, just think about it. I didn't take cocaine that night, that day. And you tested for it. Feel what I'm saying? It wasn't a godfather-type of hit, but I think someone knew I had an addiction and knew I had a weakness when it came to drugs and women, and thought that'd probably be the best time to take me out. “That's the only thing that I could come, when I'm at it, when I put it, when I try to add it all together, I'm a man that walks with God. I listen to my gut a lot. I guess that's the God within me telling me, right?
So what role did Phil Jackson play in your life on and off the court? Lamar Odom: “A teacher. We all go through school and go through academics. And I'm pretty sure you can remember who was your favorite teacher. I didn't have many. Growing up, you know what I mean? I didn't have many. I'm an eighth-grade dropout. I kind of quit school after my mother passed away when I was 12 years old. “I would say, Phil and Pat Riley. Probably my two favorites. My two favorite teachers and my basketball walk. I know the importance of every position on the court. And one of the reasons is because how I played the game, how I always saw the game.”
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Lamar Odom’s testimony surrounding addiction and a near-death experience is the spotlight for Netflix’s new documentary, “Untold: The Death & Life of Lamar Odom,” which premiered Tuesday. The doc, roughly 90 minutes long, recaps a dark moment of Odom’s life — including a time where he survived a coma, endured a dozen strokes, had six heart attacks and suffered partial kidney failure — but also focuses on a current chapter of sobriety and coping with inner demons. “It’s something I’m very proud of,” Odom told The Athletic in an exclusive interview. “As I get another day, I feel like I’m just earning stripes to be able to tell my testimony to as many people as I can. I think that’s where the healing begins.”
Lamar Odom believes, even in his struggles with addiction after the brothel incident, he is still alive because his testimony can help others. “This last stint in rehab that I just went through, I learned a lot about my thought process and how it works when you have a diseased brain,” Odom said. “Hopefully, it’ll serve for addicts, you know, for their families to understand (and be) a little bit more empathetic. I don’t think no one asks for this disease, just like no one asks to have cancer or any other disease that they might have been born with.”
Lamar Odom is getting back to work after checking out of rehab -- and getting back to his basketball roots, TMZ has learned. Sources close to the former NBA star tell us, Lamar has been traveling recently and sat down with several college basketball programs to discuss potential coaching opportunities.
The two-time NBA champ has had conversations with athletic departments and basketball staff about joining them to help develop the next generation of players. Sources told TMZ ... Lamar is pitching schools on bringing back elements of the legendary Triangle Offense, the system he mastered while playing for then-Lakers head coach Phil Jackson. We’re told Lamar believes young basketball players can benefit from the strategy ... and he's eager to land a job where he can start training a new batch of basketball stars.