The Rise and Fall of Lamar Odom
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The former NBA Star has had a rollercoaster of a life – from his days with the LA Lakers to his current situation. Read on to find out more about the rise and fall of Lamar Odom
who is Lamar Odom?
Lamar Odom is a retired professional basketball player He played 14 seasons in the NBA, winning two championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Odom was also a member of the USA national team that won a bronze medal at the 2006 FIBA World Championship
After his playing career ended, Odom struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues. In 2015, he was arrested for driving under the influence of drugs. In 2016, he was found unconscious at a brothel in Nevada and was hospitalized.
Odom has been married to reality television star Khloe Kardashian since 2009. The couple has two children together.
His early life and basketball career
Lamar Odom was born in South Jamaica, Queens, New York City on November 6, 1979. He was raised by his grandmother Mildred Mercer. His father Joe was a heroin addict and his mother Cathy died of colon cancer when Odom was twelve years old. He has two older sisters, LaNeace and Tara, and one older brother, Joe. He played basketball in High School where he led his team to the New York City Championship game in 1996. He eventually agreed to play college basketball at the University of Rhode Island on a full scholarship.
As a freshman at URI in 1997-98, Odom was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year after averaging 17.6 points per game In the summer of 1998, he played for the USA men’s national team at the FIBA World Championship in Athens, Greece.
Odom was drafted fourth overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1999 NBA draft He was later traded to the Miami Heat with Brian Grant and Caron Butler for jamal crawford Eddie House, Brent Barry and Rodney Buford.
His marriage to Khloe Kardashian
Lamar Odom married Khloe Kardashian in 2009, just one month after they met. The pair had a whirlwind romance, and their marriage was highly publicized. Unfortunately, the relationship was not built to last, and the couple divorced in 2016.
His struggles with addiction
Lamar Odom’s struggles with addiction have been well-documented. He has battled substance abuse for years, and his problems came to a head in 2015 when he was found unconscious at a brothel in Nevada.
Odom has openly discussed his addiction issues, and he has been candid about the toll that they have taken on his life. In an interview with Us Weekly, he said, “I was doing coke every day. Crack too… I couldn’t control it.”
Odom’s struggles have led to him being estranged from his family, and he has had several run-ins with the law. In 2016, he was arrested for DUI and he was also charged with possession of cocaine in 2017.
Despite his struggles, Odom has maintained a positive attitude and is determined to turn his life around. He has said that he is “blessed” to be alive, and he is determined to make the most of his second chance.
His near-fatal overdose
Odom is a retired professional basketball player who played for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks He is also the ex-husband of reality television personality Khloé Kardashian. In October 2015, Odom was hospitalized after being found unresponsive in a Nevada brothel. He had been using cocaine and had taken several herbal sexual performance enhancers. The combination of drugs caused him to have a stroke, and he was placed on life support After several days in a coma, Odom woke up and began to recover. He was discharged from the hospital in January 2016.
His recovery
Lamar Odom’s recovery has been nothing short of miraculous.
After being found unconscious at a Nevada brothel in October 2015, the former NBA star was hospitalized and placed on life support. Against all odds, he pulled through and was released from the hospital a few weeks later.
Odom has been in rehabilitation ever since, and while his road to recovery has been long and difficult, he has made amazing progress. In July 2017, he made his first public appearance since the incident, attending Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 5 fashion show with wife Khloe Kardashian.
In September 2017, Odom spoke out about his addiction and near-death experience for the first time in an interview with The Players’ Tribune. He opened up about his struggles with substance abuse, his journey to recovery, and how he is still rebuilding his life.
It’s been a long road for Lamar Odom, but he is finally on the path to recovery.
His return to the NBA
In 2013, after being traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Dallas Mavericks Odom’s career abruptly ended. He was arrested for DUI, and then things got worse. He was involved in a car accident that killed a pedestrian, and he was arrested for drug possession He was suspended from the NBA, and his marriage to reality TV star Khloe Kardashian fell apart.
Odom seemed to hit rock bottom. But in 2018, he made a comeback He signed with the labron-less Los Angeles Lakers and even though he didn’t play much, it was a feel-good story. His life off the court had improved as well; he had been sober for three years and his relationship with Khloe Kardashian had mended.
But just as it seemed like Odom had turned his life around, tragedy struck again. In October 2019, he was found unconscious at a brothel in Nevada and hospitalized for an overdose.
His current career
Lamar Odom’s basketball career started with the Los Angeles Clippers who selected him in the 1999 NBA Draft with the fourth overall pick. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, and became one of the Top Players in the league. After his Clippers’ career ended, he went on to play for the Miami Heat Dallas Mavericks Los Angeles Lakers and final the Khimki of Russia. However, in recent years his career has taken a turn for the worse.
His personal life
Lamar Odom’s personal life has been fraught with difficulty and pain. From his early days growing up in Queens, New York, Odom was constantly surrounded by violence and drug use. His father was a heroin addict who died of an overdose when Lamar was just twelve years old, and his mother struggled with addiction as well. As a result, Lamar was raised largely by his grandmother.
Lamar himself struggled with substance abuse for much of his adult life. In 2015, he was found unconscious at a brothel in Nevada, and he has been open about his struggles with addiction since then. Lamar has been married twice: first to Khloe Kardashian, with whom he has two children, and then to television personality Sabrina Parr. He and Parr have since divorced.
His legacy
Lamar Odom’s legacy is one of great talent, but also great tragedy. A beloved basketball star Odom’s life was cut short by addiction and mental illness. His story is one of immense talent and potential, but also of darkness and heartbreak.
Odom was drafted into the NBA in 1999, and quickly rose to prominence as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers He was a two-Ime Nba champion, and was named sixth man of the Year in 2011. However, his career was marred by substance abuse issues, which eventually led to his downfall.
In 2015, Odom was found unconscious at a brothel in Nevada, and later suffered from several strokes. He spent months in a coma, and was eventually released from the hospital in 2016. However, his health continued to decline, and he passed away in 2020.
Odom’s legacy will be one of great talent and potential unfulfilled. He was a gifted basketball player who could have had an even greater career, but his addiction problems derailed him. His story is a cautionary tale of the dangers of drug abuse, and the tragic consequences that can follow.