8:53pm: Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLA.com tweets that Doc Rivers had a “good conversation, [but] not much more than that” with Odom.
1:36pm: Lamar Odom appeared on his way to rejoining the Clippers after meeting with the team Friday, but Dan Woike of the Orange County Register hears no deal is likely to happen anytime soon (Twitter link). The league will examine Odom’s personal problems before any signing would take place, reports Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Last night’s reports didn’t indicate that an agreement was imminent, but it doesn’t look like there’s a definitive timetable, or that either the Clippers or Odom’s camp is speeding toward a resolution.
Executives who spoke to Turner believe the 34-year-old Odom could be physically ready to play basketball again “in a few weeks.” Perhaps of greater concern is Odom’s mental state after a summer that included a DUI charge and rumors of drug use, among other tabloid headlines. Odom’s meeting yesterday with Doc Rivers and Clippers executives was more of a check-up than a contract discussion, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Prior to that, the Clippers had made no recent contact with the power forward other than to make sure he was OK amid all the allegations against his personal character. The same had been true for the Lakers, the other team that reportedly maintains interest in Odom.
Odom nonetheless demonstrated to the executives who spoke to Turner that he’s in shape, having worked out on his own for the past month. The client of Jeff Schwartz and Excel Sports Management has been telling confidants that he’d like to sign with a contender, according to Turner, which would give the Clippers an edge over the Lakers.