If seeing thousands of versions of his wife Khloe Kardashian in the stands at TD Garden on Tuesday night was meant to rattle Lamar Odom — the Lakers’ star sure didn’t notice.
Tauntr.com, following in the Boston tradition of heckling opposing players with masks, passed out 5,000 masks outside TD Garden before Game 3 of the NBA Finals bearing the face of Kardashian, the reality TV star.
Unfortunately for Celtics fans, Odom didn’t seem to care as he found his rhythm and made a positive impact in the Lakers’ victory.
In the first two games of the NBA Finals, Odom scored just eight points and had ten fouls. In game 3, Odom scored 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting in 28 minutes of the Lakers’ 91-84 victory in Boston.
As the Celtics mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter, the Lakers had to fight to stay ahead.
With 7:37 left to play, Odom took an offensive rebound off a missed shot by Derek Fisher and banked in a seven-footer, giving the Lakers a 72-69 lead. He continued his stellar performance, as he drove around Celtics forward Glen Davis for a layup to put the Lakers up 80-76 with 3:45 left.
"He just had one of those nights where he kept playing and things happened and [he] created things for himself," Lakers head coach Phil Jackson told the L.A. Times.
When asked about the Celtics fans wearing masks, Odom shrugged it off.
"That was crazy, right?" Odom said, smiling. "They were trying to run me off my game."
It looks like Boston fans will have to try a little harder.
Game 4 of the Finals is Thursday at 9 p.m.
