The Lakers and Clippers would again have interest in signing Lamar Odom if he’s able to put his personal troubles behind him, according to Ramona Shelburne and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The teams remain wary of Odom’s alleged drug use and DUI arrest this summer, and haven’t had recent contact except to inquire about his well-being, but the 34-year-old’s “positive” history with the clubs keeps him in consideration.
Odom has begun training with an eye on returning for the second half of the season, and he must prove he’s in basketball shape as well as in a healthy mental state, Shelburne and Stein write. The 6’10” forward has played all but two seasons of his 14-year career with one L.A. team or the other, and spent last season with the Clippers, who, along with the Lakers, had interest in Odom this summer until his personal problems surfaced.
The Clippers have an open roster spot, and as Shelburne and Stein report, they’re considering several options for filling it. They’re a tax team with about $2.4MM left underneath their hard cap, part of the reason why they began the season without a full complement of 15 players. The Lakers already have 15 guys, but four of them have contracts that contain no more than $100K of guaranteed salary, as our list of non-guaranteed contracts shows. Neither L.A. team would be able to sign Odom for more than the minimum salary.