Lamar Odom responds after Khloe Kardashian slammed his documentary's 'married for fame' claims

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Former professional basketball player Lamar Odom is addressing the controversy surrounding comments he made about his marriage to media personality Khloe Kardashian after his Netflix documentary sparked backlash.

Odom has denied claims that he married Kardashian for fame or connections, while she has publicly expressed anger over how their relationship was portrayed.

The disagreement has unfolded through his recent podcast appearance and her own podcast, where both shared contrasting accounts.

Lamar Odom denies marrying Khloe Kardashian for 'clout'

In Netflix's 'Untold: The Death & Life of Lamar Odom,' which premiered on March 31, Odom made comments that led to speculation about his reasons for marrying Kardashian in 2009.

In the documentary, he said he was attracted to the Kardashian "lifestyle" and that it played a role in his decision to marry her after just 30 days together.

A close friend of Odom's, Anthony "Pumpkin" Booker, who attended their wedding, also claimed that Odom told him on the day of the wedding that he was "doing it to try to better his future" because the Kardashian family had "mad connections." 

However, Odom rejected those claims during the June 23 episode of 'Nothing's Off the Table' with host Louis Ruggiero. When asked about headlines suggesting he married Kardashian for "clout," Odom responded, "That never came out of my mouth."

"I think that was my kids or my children or whoever they were interviewing at the time, because, you know... I didn't really need [her]," Odom said. His two adult children, Destiny and LJ, both appeared in the documentary.

When the podcast host told him, "You loved her," he replied, "Yeah, I did. But I didn't need more clout," adding that he wanted to "start the show" by addressing the headlines directly.

"I didn't really need anybody, you know, at that time," he continued, adding, "Right before I was getting married, I was in a relationship with an A+ actress ... When I met Khloe, so many things just fit naturally."

Odom and Kardashian married in 2009 and separated in 2013. Their divorce was finalized in 2016 after Kardashian helped him recover following his overdose.

Khloe Kardashian slams Lamar Odom's documentary comments

Kardashian, who participated in the documentary, strongly criticized Odom's comments during the April 15 episode of her podcast, 'Khloe in Wonder Land.'

"You’re sitting on camera saying you married me for fame? Like, what?" she said.

She continued, "I feel so dumb. I spent hours doing this documentary as a favor. I'm not paid one penny. I'm pissed that I'm even involved." Kardashian also declared that she has no intention of revisiting their relationship publicly.

"I'm never going to do another Lamar thing again," she said, adding, "Everything's a joke for you. You're not accountable for anything."

Kardashian also said she believed they had already moved on from revisiting their past before Odom's recent interviews.

"I think what's pissing me off is, we did this, all good. I was done with this, but now Lamar is doing press [and saying he's] annoyed with me. Claiming or insinuating that I'm a liar, all these things, discrediting me, saying that I wasn't the one that helped him," she said.

Reflecting on how her experiences with Odom and former partner Tristan Thompson have affected her outlook on relationships, Kardashian explained why she has not dated in years.

"People are always like, 'Why haven't you had a date in four years?' I'm like, do you want to go back? Let's go back 10 years, and I can give you every man I've been with and what trauma they caused me on a daily basis," she said.