Lamar Odom, the former NBA player who became a reality TV star via his marriage to Khloe Kardashian, is fighting for his life in a Nevada hospital. Odom was found unresponsive at a brothel Tuesday afternoon. The brothel’s owner said Odom had been there for four days, and had consumed alcohol and herbal enhancement drugs.
Support for Odom has been abundant online, with tweets and Instagram posts urging the 35-year-old New York native to pull through.
Odom has faced tragedy in his life: his mother died of cancer when he was 12, his father was a drug addict, and in 2006 he lost a child to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
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Some have jumped to Odom’s defence, as rumors swirl about drug abuse and his mental state.
In 2013, Kardashian said in an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians that Odom battled depression. That show, along with a spin-off series, Khloe & Lamar, largely documented the couple’s breakup and appeared to show erratic behaviour from the basketball star.
In August of that year, Odom was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving in Los Angeles. He pleaded no contest and received three years’ probation.
Odom’s basketball career has crumbled in recent years. Odom played for the Los Angeles Lakers for seven seasons, winning NBA championships in 2009 and 2010.
He then was first traded to the Dallas Mavericks, then the Los Angeles Clippers. He became a free agent in 2013 but was not signed by another NBA team. In April 2014, he signed with the New York Knicks near the end of the regular season, but didn’t play. He was later waived.
Kardashian, who filed for divorce from Odom in December 2013, is reported to be at his hospital bedside.
With files from the Associated Press
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