Los Angeles Lakers: Would Bringing Lamar Odom Back Be a Good Move?

ESPN's Marc Stein reported earlier today that the Dallas Mavericks and Lamar Odom agreed to part ways.

Odom will be placed on the inactive list for the remainder of the season, making it possible for the Mavs to trade the former Sixth Man of the Year at the end of the season.

Would the Los Angeles Lakers pursue him considering the fact that he could improve the bench if he plays the way he did back when he wore a purple and gold uniform?

It definitely sounds like an interesting fit, but the Lakers would be crazy to trade for him. Even if the price is right, what makes everyone think that Odom is going to return to his old form?

What Lamar went through this past year with his life has been a daunting experience that nobody deserves to go through. It makes sense why he was so emotionally distraught, and it definitely showed in his game.

However, the Lakers don't need players like that. Even when Odom was with the Lakers, he was a highly emotional character. One game he'd play the most physical and aggressive game of his life, the next he'd lay flat, seemingly intimidated by the opponent.

Plus, who knows if Odom will ever get out of his funk? 

When his off-court trauma affected his game, he lost all of his confidence and once that happens, it becomes an arduous task to gain it back, especially in the NBA.

This will be a year Odom would love to forget. What he needs is a fresh start on a new team to bounce back from his trials. 

Los Angeles is too familiar. And the Lakers can't afford to just hope that he'll return to his old self. Even if the cost of acquiring Odom is a second-round draft pick, the Lakers have enough drama to begin with throughout the course of a season. No need to bring in a guy who is an emotional roller coaster. 

Finally, Odom isn't getting any younger. He'll turn 33 next season. The Lakers need a youth movement, not acquire guys just because they used to play for the team. 

Some fans believe that Odom will immediately bounce back as a player if he returns to the Lakers. That's bogus. This would've happened to Odom regardless. Even if the Lakers never traded him, he was going to have a down year. He simply went through too much in the offseason and quite frankly, he just couldn't handle it.

Which is okay.

He's human and every person handles witnessing death differently. Some people are stone cold, and it doesn't affect them at all. Others are broken and traumatized by it. There's nothing wrong with either type of person, but Odom is definitely the latter.

In the business of basketball, consistency is taken granted for. Having Odom on a team trying to chase championships will be detrimental because of the fact that teams don't know who he's going to be on any given night. 

This isn't to say that Odom will never play basketball again. There is value to Odom, and teams will line up to take a chance.

The Lakers shouldn't be one of them, though. That ship sailed away months ago, and it would be best for them to move on. 

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