According to Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, neither Lamar Odom nor his wife, Khloe Kardashian, ever reported any racist incidents to the organization.
Kardashian said last week on “The Howard Stern Show” that people in Dallas directed racial slurs at her and Odom in 2011 for being in an interracial marriage. Cuban told TMZ Sports he wasn’t aware of such incidents despite reaching out to make sure everything was OK with the couple.
“Anytime I talked to her I asked how things were going, and did she need anything,” Cuban said. “Never a word. Not from Lamar or anyone.
“We would text about trying to help Lamar and not a word. I obviously don’t know what she encountered, but I can say that it’s not something she ever mentioned to me or anyone in our organization.”
Odom spent part of one tumultuous season with the Mavericks (2011-12) and averaged just 6.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. He played in just 50 games before the Mavericks cut ties with him. Odom and Cuban had a heated halftime exchange that proved to be the final straw.
It sounds like Cuban was all about getting Odom the help he needed, though, as the polarizing forward dealt with personal issues that season. Cuban just didn’t know the extent of the issues, apparently.
“We had a psychologist working with Lamar and put together support programs for him,” Cuban told TMZ Sports. “It never came up. I like Khloe. I’m not questioning her, but she never said anything to us.”
Odom played one more season with the Los Angeles Clippers following his stint with the Mavs. The 36-year-old was hospitalized and placed on life support in October after being found unconscious at a Nevada brothel.
Thumbnail photo via Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports Images
