The tragedy of Lamar Odom
For the time being, the fortunes of Lamar Odom have changed for the better.
Since his hospitalization, Odom’s health has continued to improve from unconscious, to breathing, to talking, and now, walking.
Khloe Kardashian, his estranged wife, has called of their divorce and has remained by his bedside.
And many former teammates, friends, and celebrities have showed their continued support for Odom through condolences and prayers.
In the past couple of years, Odom’s life has been met with significant turbulence: the death of his daughter and close friends, his divorce with Khloe Kardashian, and an unsuccessful NBA career after the Lakers. All of these have aided in his fall from one of the NBA’s top players to his dependence on alcohol and drugs, and eventually, his hospitalization.
The former Los Angeles Lakers star was rushed early last week to Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas after he was found unconscious in an area brothel.
According to an ESPN article on Odom’s hospitalization, an airlift was sent out to the location, which is about 70 miles outside of Las Vegas, but Odom’s 6-foot 10 frame was too large to fit in, therefore he had to be rushed in an ambulance. Odom was said to have had “virtually every drug imaginable” in his system.
Soon after hearing about Odom’s dire condition his estranged wife, Khloe Kardashian, rushed to his bedside and has remained in support of Odom since.
From 2009–2013, Odom and Kardashian shared a widely publicized marriage, until she filed divorce, citing “irreconcilable differences.”
Odom has never been the same after the messy break-up, on the court or off. Some, like LA Times writer, Bill Plaschke, are sold on the notion that Odom’s career, though troubled at times, was furthered hindered as a result of his marriage with Kardashian, citing the reality show Khloe and Lamar, as “part of the self-destructive slide” that led him to the brothel.
At the peak of his career, Odom helped lead the Lakers to two championships in 2009 and 2010 and received the Sixth Man Award in 2010. After leaving the Lakers, however, the former star’s career began to spiral downward. He played a season with the Dallas Mavericks. In Dallas, Odom never seemed to be on the same page with the team or owner Mark Cuban who often questioned his dedication and eventually decided to part ways with him. Following the Mavs, Odom had brief stints with the Clippers and the Knicks before he was eventually cut.
To add insult to injury, in 2013 Odom’s youngest child died at the age of 6 months. And earlier this year two of his closest friends died of drug-related deaths.
Hopefully the combination of Odom’s improving health and the support of his family and friends signifies his resolve to carefully piece his life back together from the tragedy that it nearly became.
