Odom: :I'm Willing to Play for Less"

Lamar Odom made a comment that he is willing to take a pay cut to play for the Lakers before they won a championship ring. Have you heard Lamar make the same statement since?

Every player has a price and they all have their priorities. Some players are clearly all about money, some are all about winning, and the rest are a combination of both. Which category does Lamar Odom fall under?

Karl Malone, is the first player that comes to mind when I think of a player who gave up a HUGE pay day in hopes of getting a ring. He left a lot of money on the table in Utah to try and win one with Kobe and Shaq. Unfortunately, it didn't work out for him. In hindsight if he knew he wouldn't have won a ring, he wouldn't have passed on all that money. Actually, if Jordan let him have one back in the 90's Karl Malone would've been just fine taking that payday and spend his last years in Utah for a non championship contender team.

So like Karl Malone we have players like KG, Gary Payton, and Charles Barkley who gave up some star status, some stats, and some cash in hopes to chase that ring because to them that was their number one priority. They already have their legacy intact, they have the Hall of Fame in the horizon and they've already made their dough.

Looking back at Odom clearly he is not like a Karl Malone. I'm sure he knows that too. He's a great player but he won't be immortalized like Malone. He also already has his ring so there's no need to make the Malone/Barkley type of sacrifice to chase one. If you look at Odom's checklist:

1. Ring (got it)
2. Candy (got it)
3. Money (you could never have enough)

Clearly money is now his main objective. There's a reason he hasn't made that statement of willing to play for less. He no longer has to make that sacrifice. Plus, if Odom wasn't about money, he would've signed when Artest did.

I'm not going to send Lamar to the bench since you can't blame a guy for wanting more financial security for his family. Besides, I'm sure whoever his next coach will be, will send him there anyway.