Lamar Odom to leave Dallas Mavericks

Lamar Odom, Khloe Kardashian's husband is to leave The Dallas Mavericks after a disappointing season.
The 32-year-old basketball star released a statement saying he will immediately 'step away from the team.'
He said: 'The Mavericks and I have mutually agreed that it's in the best interest of both parties for me to step away from the team.

Team departure: Lamar Odom, pictured in action last weekend, is leaving the Dallas Mavericks after a disappointing season

'I'm sorry that things didn't work out better for both of us, but I wish the Mavs' organisation, my team mates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defence of their championship.'
According to ESPN, the team will list him as 'inactive' for the remainder of the season, which means he could be traded to another team when the season ends.
Lamar was surprised to be traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Mavericks back in December after a solid season for the L.A. team.

Watching and waiting: Some commentators have claimed that wife Khloe Kardashian has been a distraction for the basketball player 

But he has posted career-low statistics for the Mavericks this season and was at one point dropped to the lower leagues to recover his form.
He only received four first-quarter minutes of playing time at Saturday night's game in Memphis.
The sportsman has also had family issues to deal with off the court, and had a break from the team in February to attend his ill father in Los Angeles.

Losing his focus? The sportsman has been busy filming his Khloe & Lamar reality show as well as appearing in Keeping Up With the Kardashians

Future life: Khloe and Lamar are said to have leased a posh condo in Dallas

And some commentators claimed that his involvement with the Kardashians, including starring in his own reality show Khloe and Lamar, has caused him to lose focus on the basketball court.
However, sources today told Radar that the team 'dumped him' because 'he had too much drama and couldn't get past his issues.'
'The Mavericks are parting ways with Lamar today. Too much drama, not enough focus on basketball,' a source close to the situation told the website.
'He just couldn’t get past all his issues, whatever they may be, and concentrate on playing basketball.'
And the insider added that Khloe is not to blame.

'It’s not anything with Khloe, in fact, she has been the smartest one in his group and has been pushing him hardest to stay focused on his job,' tehy told the website.
The news will come as a blow to Lamar and Khloe who have just leased a condo in Dallas, according to TMZ, and had planned to begin shooting for the family reality show.
Lamar was a success story with his former team The Los Angeles Lakers, playing with them from 2004 to  2011.

Gone Lake: Lamar had previously been a star player alongside Kobe Bryant for the LA Lakers but got traded