Facing past regrets. Lamar Odom is feeling the love from Celebrity Big Brother viewers after he got candid about his ex-wife, Khloé Kardashian, on the CBS series.
“Actually, it’s really nice to hear [the support]. It’s refreshing. When you marry someone in 30 days, they’ll always be connected to you somehow, someway. She’ll always have a place in my heart,” Odom, 42, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, February 22, of the connection he shares with Kardashian, 37, after he was evicted from the Big Brother house.
The retired athlete noted that the Good American cofounder’s help after his near-fatal 2015 overdose was monumental to him, adding, “When I came out of the coma, she took care of me. I’m talking about a woman that wiped my backside when I couldn’t do it myself. So, I’m fond of her for that. She had a lot of dignity and pride as well as I did.”
The former couple announced their split in 2013 after four years of marriage. Before calling it quits, the duo had their own reality show titled Khloé & Lamar. In 2015, Kardashian temporarily withdrew her divorce petition when Odom was hospitalized so that she could make medical decisions on his behalf. They finalized their divorce in in December 2016.
The California native previously opened up about where she stands with her ex-husband during the Keeping Up With the Kardashians reunion special in June 2021.
“We’re not in touch, but I honestly wish him nothing but the best and good health. I think we’re all really rooting for him and just want the best for him,” she told host Andy Cohen at the time. “I loved that chapter in my life. Regardless of how dark and crazy that might sound, it was still just a very significant part of my life and my story, and I wouldn’t change it. It sounds crazy, but it was meant to happen and it happened.”
Kardashian moved on with Tristan Thompson in September 2016. The twosome welcomed their first child together, daughter True, in April 2018 shortly after the NBA athlete, 30, was caught cheating with multiple women. Though they initially stayed together, the duo split in 2019 when Thompson kissed Kylie Jenner‘s then-best friend, Jordyn Woods.
Us confirmed that the pair were giving their relationship another try in August 2020 while they quarantined together during the coronavirus pandemic. However, Kardashian and Thompson broke up again nearly one year later.
In December 2021, Us confirmed that Maralee Nichols sued Thompson for child support after claiming that they conceived a child in March 2021, while he was still in a relationship with Kardashian. Us later broke the news that the fitness model gave birth to a baby boy on December 1.
Thompson, who also shares 5-year-old son Prince with ex Jordan Craig, revealed via Instagram the following month that he is the father of Nichols’ child, apologizing to Kardashian in the process.
Odom, for his part, made his feelings for the KUWTK alum clear throughout season 3 of Celebrity Big Brother.
“I had a beautiful wife. We were together every day until we got married,” the New York native told his costars during the February 14 episode. “I never thought about getting married again. I didn’t treat that good woman right.”
The former professional basketball player revealed that he wanted to try his “damnedest” to get in contact with Kardashian once back in the real world, adding, “I wish I was mature enough to handle [marriage] right, but I wasn’t. If given the opportunity again, now I know what to do. What to do and what not to do. Sometimes it’s hard for me to sleep at night thinking about her.”
Before Odom’s elimination, a source told Us that Kardashian thought her ex’s appearance on the competition series was a “great” choice, adding, “It’s income for him and something new and exciting.”
Now that he’s out of the Big Brother house, Odom is ready to reach out to Kardashian.
“Yeah, I will. She’s just somebody I will always wish the best for. And hopefully I get to see her soon,” he told Us, noting that he wasn’t ruling out another turn on reality TV in the future. “Maybe, if the opportunity fits itself, if I can learn from it. I don’t want to waste any time. I’m 42 years old, beating death, became sober at the same time. So, who knows? If it makes me happy, I would do it. If I can help somebody, I would do it as well.”
Celebrity Big Brother airs on CBS Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8 p.m. ET and Mondays at 9 p.m. ET.
With reporting by Sharon Tharp
