Remember when the Lakers traded Lamar Odom for nothing but a trade exception to the same team that defeated them in the playoffs the previous post-season?
Now, Odom is claiming that all the rumors saying he demanded to be traded from Los Angeles aren’t entirely factual. Oh, boy.
During an interview with Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Odom stated that he didn’t ask to be traded from the Lakers following the botched Chris Paul deal that would have sent him to the New Orleans Hornets.
The proposed trade upset Odom, and after the NBA vetoed the deal, Lakers officials said Odom told them he wanted out of L.A.
Odom now says the trade wasn’t his doing.
“Everybody knows that,” he said. “It was something that they were willing to get done no matter what. I think it is OK for them to admit that.”
A week ago this might have been a comment that was looked upon with great skepticism, but after the team shipped out Derek Fisher in an attempt to save some money, Odom may be telling the truth.
Still, it’s hard to believe the front office would trade the Sixth Man of the Year for what they did, especially after his most productive season. He was obviously unhappy when the team tried to trade him the first time, and mentioned how betrayed he felt during a radio interview before the deal was cancelled.
Odom has struggled since being traded to the Mavericks, and even reportedly requested to be bought out.
Odom is averaging just 7.2 points and 4.4 rebounds so far this season.