Lamar Odom recalls his time in Baskonia: 'I felt I still had something left' / News - Basketnews.com

Odom says he felt he could still compete at a high level, but a back injury stopped him. The former Laker admitted he would've loved to retire in Spain.

Credit: AFP - Scanpix Credit AFP - Scanpix

Lamar Odom's signing with Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz was one of the biggest stories in European basketball ten years ago. However, it only lasted a few months.

Lamar Odom

Position:PFAge:44Height:208 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:New York, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

Odom officially became part of the Baskonia organization on February 18th, 2014, after agreeing on a two-month deal. The move generated tremendous hype both among the locals and European basketball fans alike.

However, Odom ultimately played in just two games for Baskonia, one in the Spanish Liga Endesa (ACB) (vs. Valencia Basket) and one in the EuroLeague (vs. Unicaja Malaga).

"I felt like I still had something left in the tank, that I still had gas," Odom told El Correo.

Odom scored just two points in those two games with Baskonia. He made just one field goal in seven attempts against Valencia in ACB and missed the lone three-pointer in the EuroLeague.

Odom's time was not without issues, as the former NBA star once went to Bilbao for a night trip to the clubs, which forced then-youth player Devon Van Oostrum to get suspended by Baskonia.

"Sportswise, it was a fiasco, but it was a great marketing operation because we were on the front pages of the media, and there was a tremendous expectation [from the fans]," Baskonia's president Josean Querejeta recently said in an interview with Movistar+.

"I would have loved to retire in Spain," Odom admitted. However, his brief stint with Baskonia ended after a back injury stopped him from competing at 100%. He was signed with the New York Knicks later during that 2013-14 season but didn't manage to appear on an NBA court again.

"One day, he did a spectacular workout, and the next, his back hurt. He didn't come back," Andres Nocioni, his teammate at the time, told El Correo.

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