Dallas Mavericks: Why Teams Should Be Wary of Lamar Odom After Dallas Fiasco

Can the experience of being on a championship contender every year like the Los Angeles Lakers spoil a player?

It probably does as those players feel a sense of entitlement with all of the success that makes them feel rather “inferior” to being on a team that is a little different in all reality.

It appeared that since the moment Lamar Odom was dealt to the Dallas Mavericks, that sense of entitlement hurt him. Gone were the days of an aggressive Odom looking to handle the ball and shoot the jumper or drive the ball all the way into the painted area for a dunk or layup plus the foul.

Rather, an unhappy, unmotivated Odom showed up and appeared never really wanting to be in Dallas in the first place. It got to the point where it almost seemed that Odom was depressed about something.

But shouldn't Odom be a professional and continue to play despite all of the feelings since he is getting paid (a lot of money) to play basketball?

He should have, but he did not and that is a fault of his. The Mavericks were fed up with Odom and decided that it was best to keep him away from the team so he would not continue to be a distraction.

As a result, should teams shy away from Odom believing that he has personal issues that need to be resolved?

Or should Odom pay his salary back to the Mavericks with an apology for not doing his job?

Well, it appears neither aforementioned idea will occur. Odom could very well look to join a contender and get back to those “winning ways,” although this could be a black eye on his NBA resume.

However, it may be a better idea for Odom to focus on solving his personal issues before looking to get back on the basketball court.