Lamar Odom had what was arguably the finest season in his 12-year NBA career, and it appears he will get rewarded on Tuesday for his efforts. The Lakers have announced that a news conference will be held today at a Los Angeles hotel for Odom, per Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. Speculation is that Odom will be named the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year.
Odom set career highs in the 2010-2011 season in field goal percentage (.530), three-point percentage (.382), true shooting percentage (.589), effective field goal percentage (.568), offensive rating (118), and PER (19.4). Odom averaged 14.4 points and 8.7 rebounds in 32.2 minutes per game. He actually started 35 games, when Andrew Bynum was hurt, but was also very effective off the bench, averaging 13.0 points and 7.5 rebounds off the bench.
Last month, Dexter Fishmore stated the case for Odom winning the sixth man award:
His offensive roles include post threat, spot-up shooter, transition finisher and point forward. His versatility makes him a matchup migraine for opposing teams. And he's probably been the Lakers' most consistently influential defender. Bynum and Artest are more capable of dramatically affecting any individual game, but night in, night out, Odom has been the team's most reliable defensive presence over the long course of the season.
No Laker player has ever won the Sixth Man of the Year award, though Michael Cooper did win the 1986-1987 Defensive Player of the Year despite primarily being a reserve.
For more news and information on Lamar Odom or the Lakers, be sure to read the SB Nation blog Silver Screen and Roll.