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Lamar Odom’s crack cocaine addiction had reached such dangerous levels … even his dealer thought the NBA star had gone over the edge, and cut off his supply last week, TMZ has learned.
Sources connected to the dealer tell us, the crack slinger had delivered the drug to Lamar all summer, but last week, Lamar was insatiable … calling incessantly and demanding more and more crack. His go-to dealer apparently got scared enough to cut Lamar off.
Reported by TMZ.com
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In 2010, Farmar was frustrated over playing a secondary role in Phil Jackson’s triangle offense, which didn’t suit the player’s game. His journey took him to New Jersey, where he averaged 9.6 and 10.4 points per game in two seasons, and during the lockout to Tel Aviv, where he reconnected with his Jewish heritage.
After he was traded to Atlanta and waived, he signed with Anadolu Efes of the Turkish League and lived in Istanbul, where he marveled at hearing the traditional Muslim call to prayer echo around the city five times a day.
“A lot of people can’t say they have that experience in the short lives we live,” said Farmar, who shared it with his wife, former UCLA and professional soccer player Jill Oakes, and their first child. The couple added a second daughter a month ago.
Seeing the world has helped Farmar see himself more clearly and recognize what’s important.
He followed the Lakers closely, staying up until the wee hours in Europe to watch them on TV. But not until Jackson retired and was replaced — by Mike Brown, who was replaced by Mike D’Antoni — was the situation right for Farmar to return to the Lakers, or for them to want him back. They paid his Turkish team $500,000 to buy out the rest of a contract potentially worth $10 million, and he took a one-year NBA deal for $1.1 million.
Reported by Helene Elliot of the Los Angeles Times
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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed free agent guard Xavier Henry, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.
Henry, a three-year NBA veteran, appeared in 50 games (2 starts) last season with the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) averaging 3.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists in 12.5 minutes.
An early entry candidate for the 2010 NBA Draft following his freshman season at Kansas, the 6-6 guard was originally selected by the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round (12th overall pick) of the 2010 NBA Draft before being traded to New Orleans in January of 2012.
Henry has career averages of 4.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 133 games (18 starts).
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Free agent forward Louis Amundson has sparked interest from several teams, including the Lakers and Clippers, according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein.
Bartelstein said in an interview with the Los Angeles Newspaper Group that his client plans to finalize a deal with a team within the week, though he wouldn’t go into exact specifics what role and terms would best suit Amundson.
Amundson had meetings with the Lakers and Clippers and even worked out at the team’s respective facilities in recent weeks, but it remains unclear if he winds up playing in Los Angeles.
Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Blog)
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Pau Gasol remains an avid traveler and a highly-cultured person, ranging from reading historical novels, making trips to countries in need as a UNICEF ambassador and attending operas. But Gasol’s latest excursion serves a different person.
He landed Wednesday in Buenos Aires, Argentina where he will represent Madrid’s 2020 Olympic bid committee in hopes that his native Spain can host those Summer Games.
Madrid will compete with Tokyo and Istanbul for the 2020 Summer Games. The International Olympic Committee will announce its decision Saturday in Argentina.
Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Blog)
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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed free agent forward Shawne Williams, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.
Williams, a six-year NBA veteran out of Memphis, was originally selected by the Indiana Pacers in the first round (17th overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft and has appeared in 215 career games (23 starts) for the Pacers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets. The 6-9 forward holds career averages of 5.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 16.4 minutes.
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In another sign that suggests he may be fully healthy for the beginning of the season, Lakers forward Pau Gasol spent Labor Day weekend playing on the basketball court for the first time since the team’s first-round loss last April to the San Antonio Spurs.
“After this morning work, this evening I will get back to the basketball court wearing these!” Gasol wrote on his Instagram account, which featured a photo of his shoes.
It’s unclear what basketball drills Gasol completed, but the step marks another level of progress surrounding the rehab around his knees. He had played with a variety of ailments that kept him sidelined last season for 33 games, including knee tendonosis, plantar fascia in his right foot and a concussion.
Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Blog)
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He will run up and down the court with bursts of athleticism, offering something the Lakers sorely need. Young will rarely meet a shot he won’t like, driving everyone crazy when they don’t go in and making everyone go wild when he goes on a scoring spree. And Young likely won’t play much defense since, well, he hardly has for much of his 6-year NBA career.
But at least for Labor Day, Young stayed away from the hardwood and stepped foot on the gridiron for an informal game of flag football at Rowley Park in downtown Los Angeles. As shown on Young’s Instagram account, he teamed up with former Washington Wizards teammate Gilbert Arenas among others to beat a team led by Detroit Pistons guard and former Dominguez High standout Brandon Jennings.
Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Blog)
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Q: As a former Los Angeles Laker, what do you think about the situation with Dwight Howard leaving the Lakers?
Gary Payton: “It’s a player doing what he wants to do. The Lakers knew what they were getting into when they got him. They gambled and lost the game. Kobe Bryant, to me, is still the best basketball player in my mind. He played with me and he was in my era. I still love him to death. He’s a little brother to me. They’re going to struggle for a little while, and Kobe is on his way out. He has two more years to his contract and they will probably sign him back another two years and try to rebuild. They’re going to struggle. It’s going to be a hard time to the Lakers fan, but they will come back. It’s going to be a transition that they will get through.”
Reported by Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports
Basketball star Lamar Odom was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence early Friday after a California Highway Patrol officer saw his white Mercedes-Benz traveling erratically on a San Fernando Valley Freeway.
The husband of reality TV star Khloe Kardashian was stopped shortly before 4 a.m. and was arrested after a field sobriety test.
The CHP said Odom’s car was observed traveling in a ”serpentine manner” before he pulled off the freeway.
”Mr. Odom showed objective signs of intoxication and was unable to perform field sobriety tests,” the CHP said in a report. Authorities said he later declined to take a chemical test.
Reported by the Associated Press
