13 Highs & Lows Lamar Odom’s Docuseries Could Cover
Five years after his near-death from an overdose, former Los Angeles Lakers star (and Kardashian Konnection) Lamar Odom is getting ready to share his life story in an upcoming docuseries.
“I decided to tell my own truth through my documentary,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “I think this will give my fans a look into my life and [help them] understand who Lamar Odom is, and hopefully I will be able to inspire people. I might not have made the best decisions a lot of times throughout my life, but I surely am a product of my environment.”
Producers are shopping the almost-finished project in the hopes of a 2021 release. Meanwhile, we’ve rounded up some high and low points of Odom’s life that the series might illuminate.
Low: His Mother’s Death
The native of Queens, York, lost his mother to colon cancer when he was 12. His father was dealing with a heroin addiction at the time, so Odom moved in with his grandmother. She died in 2003, but, as he later told Sports Illustrated, she’s always on his mind.
High: His Parade Player of the Year Win
As a high school senior, the young basketball star was named Parade Player of the Year in 1997. The previous honoree: future Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant.
Low: His UNLV Saga
In 1997, Odom was kicked out of the University of Nevada at Las Vegas — having never played a game for the school — after a Sports Illustrated story questioned the veracity of his ACT score. He had also received $5,600 from a UNLV booster, which landed the university on probation and led to the firing of the team’s head coach.
High: His NBA Draft
Odom was the fourth overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft —even though he had tried to withdraw, not believing himself to be ready for the big leagues. He ended up with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Low: His Drug Violations
The Clippers suspended Odom from five games in 2001 after he violated the NBA’s antidrug policy twice in eight months. At the time, he admitted to smoking marijuana.
Low: His Son’s Death
In 2006, Odom and then-girlfriend Liza Morales lost their 6-month-old son, Jayden, to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. The grieving father spent the next two years seeing a UCLA psychologist.
High: His NBA Championships
After leaving the Clippers in 2003 and spending a season with the Miami Heat, the 6-foot-10 forward joined the Lakers in 2004. He and the team won the NBA championship in 2009 and 2010.
High: His National Team Glory
As a member of the United States men’s national basketball team, Odom took a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics and gold at the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
High (& Low): His Marriage to Khloé Kardashian
Odom tied the knot with reality star Khloé Kardashian in 2009 after a month of dating, and their relationship spawned the E! series Khloé & Lamar. The couple split in December 2013 (he admitted he was unfaithful to her and was using cocaine), but their divorce wasn’t finalized for another three years.
Low: His Cousin’s Death & Traffic Accident
In 2011, one of Odom’s closest cousins was murdered, and while the athlete was being driven to the funeral, his car was involved in a multi-vehicle collision that claimed the life of a 15-year-old pedestrian. “Death always seems to be around me,” he told the Los Angeles Times that same year.
Low: His DUI Arrest
Odom was arrested for driving under the influence in 2013 and pleaded no contest to the charge, accepting a sentence of three years’ probation and three months of alcohol abuse treatment.
Low: His Near-Fatal Overdose
Odom almost died in 2015 after overdosing at a Las Vegas brothel. “There was an unholy concoction of cocaine, cognac, and cannabis coursing through my veins,” he later revealed in his book, Darkness to Light. “My heart stopped twice. I had twelve seizures and six strokes. My lungs collapsed and my kidneys ruptured. I was on life support. Everyone I’d ever loved was looking at me through bleary eyes.”
High: Drug-Free & Happy
In 2019, Odom, now 41, said he was drug-free and happy to be alive. “[The overdose] made me realize I couldn’t live the way I’d been living,” he told People. “Life is too good.”
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