Lamar Odom has worn out his southern hospital welcome and has been released by the Dallas Mavericks. Fans of the show Khloe and Lamar have seen first hand Odom’s difficult transition as a member of the Mavericks. In the 50-games this season, Odom has only started four and averaged a career low 6 points per game. Odom also took a personal leave of absence to attend to his father in LA.
In a statement to ESPNDallas.com Odom said: “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. 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.”
Because Odom was still on the roster at the March 15 trade deadline, he is ineligible to play for another NBA team this season. However, instead of releasing Odom Mavericks are making him inactive. The Mavericks owe Odom $8.2 million for the 2012 and 2013 season, and hope to dump some of his contract by trading him in the offseason.
But it may be difficult to find another team willing to take a chance on the 13-year veteran. Last month, even head coach Rick Carisle called out Odom’s commitment, “Our fans want to know that Lamar’s in. Our players want to know that Lamar’s in. It’s not about how many points he’s scoring or rebounds … Our fans, our players want to see the guy playing like his pants are on fire and we haven’t seen that so far and that’s got to change.”
Baseball values sportsmanship but is teaching its young fans it values tattling too! It was announced in November that MLB players are no longer allowed to chew tobacco in games. Under the agreement reached by the league and the players association, major-league players, managers and coaches are not allowed to carry a tobacco tin or package in their uniform at any time fans are in the ballpark. This includes during interviews, autograph sessions and team events.