If you‘re a true loyal Mavericks fan, you’re well aware that Lamar Odom, basketball forward for the Dallas Mavericks, was assigned to play for the NBA Development League under the Texas Legends last Saturday, but was forced to back out of the game at the last minute due to Maverick’s Head Coach Rick Carlisle’s orders.
The original decision to play for the D-league was made by Odom, his agent Jeff Schwartz and Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban. The assignment to play for the Texas Legends was apparently not a punishment but given an opportunity to prove his trust and talent to the Dallas Mavericks.
I’m not here to trash or praise Odom’s NBA career or skills. Obviously the man has talent, averaging about 14.9 points per game for the L.A. Lakers during the 2010-2011 season. His accomplishments speak for themselves. My concern is the Mavericks’ chemistry this season. Do I think that Odom’s 12 hour “demotion” got blown out of proportion? Of course I do. Sure, I can see how people would be upset with Odom seeing as he was absent for four scheduled games due to family matters, but as I watched the games that he’s getting criticized for missing, I didn’t see much of an improvement on his teammate‘s part.
Carlisle expressed his disappointment on Odom’s performance and attitude this season during his weekly radio show last Friday. How about making statements on the entire team’s disappointing performance this season instead, Carlisle? I can assure you that Odom isn’t the only player struggling. Fans are blaming Odom’s unsuccessful season to the “Kardashian course”. Blame it on lack of communication and overconfidence, people!
Some of Odom’s teammates also commented on the subject. They seemed very understanding of Odom’s personal situation but fellow teammate Jason Kidd stated, “Trust factor is always big. He’s going to have to earn it with a lot of the guys…. we just want him to be him and be comfortable and play.”
Point blank, I believe that the Dallas Mavericks came into this season very confident as the NBA’s defending world champion and don’t think that they know how to take the multiple game losses very well. Every player is vital in order to have a successful season but focusing on one player’s issues seems a little more than ridiculous when you get beat by the New Orleans Hornets. In other words, the worst team the Western Conference has to offer.
Hopefully this little shindig doesn’t turn out to be a publicity stunt for Odom’s reality show Khloe and Lamar but something tells me that we’ll be seeing the real story behind this mess when the show airs.
