Lamar Odom: ‘There’s Nothing Amazing About Not Showing Emotion’

ESPNLA got up with the big after he was assessed a wacky technical foul: “Midway through the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ preseason game against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, Lamar Odom was whistled for a shooting foul against Carl Landry. After the call was made, Odom kept his offending arm up in the air for several seconds to indicate he believed his defense was legal and within the rule of verticality, and an official promptly issued him a technical foul. The explanation? Even though Odom’s mouth was silent, his arm was raised for more than three seconds. Automatic technical. ‘That was one of the weirdest technicals I’ve ever gotten,’ Odom said after the game… Even if Odom doesn’t agree with the rule, he does think that the fastest way to a player’s mouth is through his wallet. ‘You have to zip it,’ Odom said. ‘If they call you for a tech, it’s $2,000. That’s a lot of money in America or anywhere. I don’t want to give away $2,000 for going, ‘Damn, I thought I had the ball!’ or showing emotion. I want to keep my money, point blank.’ … Odom also pointed out the hypocrisy of the league’s celebrating emotional play in television commercials and advertisements, while at the same time punishing emotional reactions to the officials by doling out technical fouls. ‘It’s kind of crazy because that’s what people love to see. You watch the commercials and the NBA has dunking, [players making] faces and ‘Where Amazing Happens,” Odom said. ‘Now it’s like ‘Where Normal Happens.’ … There’s nothing amazing about not showing emotion.'”