A week before Netflix’s “Untold: The Death & Life of Lamar Odom” premieres March 31, the documentary’s subject has not seen the film.
The two-time NBA champion, who dribbled into the Kardashians' reality-sphere while concealing a drug habit, is now a recovering addict approaching 60 days of sobriety when we speak on March 24. (Odom completed a 30-day stay in rehab in February, following an arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence the month prior. Odom has pleaded not guilty, and a bench trial is scheduled for July 7.)“Every recovering addict knows that you want to kind of stay away from things that were traumatizing in your life,” Odom tells USA TODAY. The 46-year-old, who has been sober since Jan. 28, welcomes the opportunity to share his perspective, but revisiting the tragedies and transgressions in interviews comes at a cost.
“I was telling my girlfriend on the way here, it's like swimming in a cesspool of trauma,” Odom says. (His current partner hasn't been confirmed.) “And I'm trying to get out of it, but the story reels me back into that pool every time. But I just know I'm bigger than the situation, and I hope to help a lot of people by giving my testimony. Not just with the story, but just in life, that we can all overcome addiction.”
