Dallas Mavericks: Lamar Odom Is Key to Title Defense

Lamar Odom has been an enigma in a Dallas Mavericks uniform. From Dallas fans booing him to his first career DNP-CD in a loss to the San Antonio Spurs, it hasn't been great for him by any stretch. However, one sentiment remains: Dallas needs Lamar Odom.

His personal life doesn't help his game. Being married to a Kardashian and starring in a reality TV show that irks the screams of teenage girls everywhere when he enters the game can't do anything for helping him get into a groove with his Mavericks teammates.

Throw in an offseason that included the loss of a relative, his "wrong place, wrong time" car ride that killed a motorist in Los Angeles and the relocation of his career to Dallas after he felt LA didn't want him post-Chris Paul, and you understand why consistency hasn't been his strong suit.

Yet, the Mavericks are still in the playoff hunt, and the only stat that makes sense for his place in Rick Carlisle's rotation is Dallas' 0-7 record when he does not play.

Call me crazy, but that has to mean something.

Maybe more importantly than that, his teammates believe in him, and understand that through all his struggles as a Mav, he has the ability to erase them all with a solid stretch run and role on a team that is still the defending champions.

Here's Lamar season stat line before the Mavericks take on the Memphis Grizzlies Wednesday night:

MPG     PPG     RPG     APG     FG%     FT%     3P%

21.1      6.9        4.3       1.7       .353      .594      .250

All are career lows, aside from his 19 percent three-point shooting in the 2001-2002 season with the Los Angeles Clippers. It's hard to justify that he means anything more to this team than what he's doing on the court, but I think his value is understated, and even misunderstood.

Odom is backing up possibly the greatest power forward of the last 10 years in Dirk Nowitzki. If he's not the greatest, he's in the top 3. He's also in a new offense, where there is more pick-and-roll and fast-break basketball. I contend that he wouldn't have fared as well in Mike Brown's new offense with the Lakers this season.

Aside from that, Dallas has former sixth-man Jason Terry. They don't need Odom to score 16 points a game; they need him to score eight or nine, play solid defense, rebound and be a matchup nightmare for the opposing team.

Some games he's been that, in others he seems disinterested, passing up shots and showing a lack of effort on the bench during timeouts, declining to enter the huddle with his head down in the back.

With a brutal stretch over the next month before the NBA playoffs begin, Dallas closes its season with road games in Memphis, Portland, Los Angeles, Utah, Atlanta and Chicago. If that isn't postseason basketball I don't know what is.

This is the time for Odom to show up. No more sickness, no more disinterested basketball and no more excuses. If Dallas wants to return to NBA glory, they'll do so behind their slogan for last season —"The Time is Now."

But this time around, they'll strap that to Odom's back, and see if he crumbles under the weight, or is as hungry for his third career championship ring the way the City of Dallas is for its second.