Lamar Odom is one of those NBA players that is easy to poke fun at. It is never done with any venom, more lighthearted because he is a bit of a goofy guy and ended up with a Kardashian added on to the comedic value.
Sometimes with athletes we forget they do have a “past” and many times it isn’t a pretty one. Lamar Odom and his wife Khloe Kardashian reality show is starting soon and one of the episodes Lamar opens up about his father.
Lamar Odom has exposed his dark childhood, as the son of a heroin addict.
The two-time Los Angeles Lakers championship star is set to make the emotional revelation in E!’s latest Kardashian sister spinoff, Khloe & Lamar.
“My father’s a heroin addict,” Odom said about his father, Joe, who makes a surprise cameo in the debut episode, when he turns up unannounced at wife Khloe’s book signing.
“It’s hard for me to speak upon it and get it through to Khloe because she grew up so different.”
“I was six when my parents split up; I had my mother around until I was 12 (she passed away of colon cancer)… and after that my father wasn’t around.
“I witnessed things that a 10-year-old definitely wasn’t supposed to see.”
The story isn’t unusual and it is unfortunate that a lot of these inner kidsm aren’t lucky enough to make it into the NBA even though a lot of them think that is there only way out.
Odom had issues while in college and early on in his NBA career that many believe came from a lack of maturity. Maybe it was a defense mechanism based off what happened in his past. It isn’t an excuse, but definitely a reality.
While most would agree Odom never reached the full potential most predicted for him when he came into the NBA he has carved out a niche for himself both on and off the court.
