Lammy has some thoughts. Lamar Odom is out of the Celebrity Big Brother house and reflecting on his game and his fellow houseguests.
The former NBA player, 42, was voted out in the first part of the double eviction episode on Monday, February 21, as he sat next to former Real Housewife Cynthia Bailey. He was nominated by Head of Household Todrick Hall who is taking a lot of heat on social media for the things he said on camera, which surprised Lamar when he left the house.
“I know how much social media and his fans and the people mean to him. I don’t really think he wished to rub anyone the wrong way,” the athlete exclusively tells Us Weekly of the singer, 36. “He just took the wrong approach to winning and playing a game. I think that was kind of obvious when he won the HOH. And then he even, after he won the HOH, he comes downstairs still singing. ‘HOH!’ I thought that was a gloat. There’s a certain way to win and a certain way to lose.”
Lamar admits, “I’ve never even heard of him,” but does say he was warned about Todrick prior to coming into the house: “[My friend] told me that he was a person that I would have to keep my eye on.”
While the reality star didn’t exactly connect with Todrick, he did build a great friendship with Todd Bridges. Not only did he tell host Julie Chen Moonves that he asked the Diff’rent Strokes star to be his “sober coach,” but the duo are currently brainstorming a sitcom tentatively titled Willis and Lammy.
“I wouldn’t mind moving back to LA to become a sitcom star,” Lamar tells Us. “I never thought that would happen, but God puts things in front of us and it’s up to us to make the decisions to take it or turn it down.”
What else did Lamar have to say about his time on Big Brother? And how does he feel about fans wanting him back with ex-wife Khloe Kardashian? Watch above or scroll down to read the rest of our interview!
Celebrity Big Brother airs on CBS Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8 p.m. ET and Mondays at 9 p.m. ET.
Us: How are you feeling this morning?
Lamar Odom: I’m fine. A little refreshed. I don’t have those bright lights in my eyes this morning. At least I’m able to wake up on my own time. I just probably need a day to unwind, just relax, have a day of – after I get done with these interviews – doing nothing, would feel good.
Us: Is it overwhelming to be back on your phone and social media?
LO: Yeah, it was overwhelming. I had my wallet and some money in my pocket and two phones. Like, I didn’t know what to do. I kept, like, misplacing my phone and it was a little overwhelming. But I’ll probably get accustomed to it really quick and hopefully soon.
Us: So what’s been the most surprising thing you learned since you’ve been outside the house now?
LO: Honestly you want me to be honest with you?
Us: Of course.
LO: The hit that Todrick is taking from the outside world. I don’t think that was his plan at all. I know how much social media and his fans and the people mean to him. I don’t really think he wished to rub anyone the wrong way. He took the wrong approach to winning and playing a game. I think that was kind of obvious when he won the HOH. And then he even, after he won the HOH, he comes downstairs still singing. “HOH!” I thought that was a gloat. There’s a certain way to win and a certain way to lose. Because when I lost, after I was disappointed with my performance, he was one of the people that always come up to me and be like, “Are you OK? Are you OK? Are you OK?” And I’m like, “No, I just lost.” Your energy can be that much discerning, even when you win, it can be kind of negative.
Us: Some of the houseguests mentioned to me that Todrick often played the victim. Would you agree with that?
LO: I think so, but I think that’s the position that maybe he’s used to being in from being a gay African American man in society. I could see how it was hard, but in the house, that’s where you have a clean slate. I don’t think anybody was judging him. I don’t think Carson [Kressley] had that same problem. But he’s a white gay man, because it depends on how you look at it. But I think he had a clean slate in the house so he could have just been whoever Todrick is.
Us: Fans seemed to love when you ripped up his cards.
LO: You guys seen it? Yeah. It was just like, “I don’t know.” It was hard for him to stop talking about himself.
Us: You were definitely the one to call him out, which was refreshing.
LO: In his way to being a celebrity … you know, I’ve never even heard of him. But it’s funny because I have a friend who, she could have sworn that he was gonna be in the house for some reason. She had a gut feeling and she told me that he was a person that I would have to keep my eye on.
Us: You knew Todrick and Miesha [Tate] were an inseparable duo. You even said that you were trying to get Todd to vote Miesha out. Do you think if you had done that a little bit earlier you might have been able to pull something together?
LO: Yeah, but that game is really funny. ‘Cause if you try to strike too soon and you give away that you’re gunning for somebody, but you don’t get ’em, then you kind of created an enemy. So it’s a real funny game on when to strike, when you have HOH. Are you ready to be the HOH? ‘Cause you have to evict two people. I don’t even really think I wanted that power. I understand the position of power.
Us: You weren’t winning comps and I know you are used to winning, was that hard for you? There were also times you seemed kinda over the game. Did you have that drive to win Big Brother?
LO: I always have the drive to win. I’ve been around winners all my life. I’ve been playing sports since I was maybe, like, 10 years old, organized sports until I was 10 years old. All I can remember is bringing home first place trophies or MVP trophies and sportsmanship trophies, which is the person that loses the championship game. But yeah, I’ve always been used to having my way. My high school team was No. 2 in the country. I played with two other guys that made it to the NBA. When I was a peewee quarterback, my last football game, I threw the winning touchdown pass. When I was in high school, a high school basketball player, I was first team all American, No. 1 and No. 2 player in the country. So I’ve always created with the best. I’m always trying to carry myself with pride and dignity.
Us: You had a ton of people rooting for you, Lamar. People are also rooting for you to get back together with Khloe. Is it weird for you or is it nice to hear?
LO: Actually, it’s really nice to hear. It’s refreshing. You know, when you marry someone in 30 days, they’ll always be connected to you somehow, some way. She’ll always have a place in my heart. And 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. And she had a lot of dignity and pride as well as I did.
Us: Are you gonna reach out to her?
LO: Yeah, I will. She’s just somebody I will always wish the best for. And hopefully I get to see her soon.
Us: What’s next for you?
LO: I don’t know. I really want to coach the University of Rhode Island’s basketball team. I think I can make them a contender in a short period of time. You know, if I take the Miami Heat’s workout regimen, and combine it with the triangle offense, Tex Winter/Phil Jackson triangle offense. I think I could have them really competing in a short period of time.
Us: That’s amazing. So no more reality TV for Lamar?
LO: I don’t know. 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.
Us: I’m sure people wanna see that. People love you. They love you and Todd as friends and watching you together.
LO: Yeah. Me and Todd were even thinking about a sitcom together because our energy was so good together. People seemed to feed off of it. If he can get the name Willis back, we were probably going to call it Willis and Lammy. I think we could get a good response if we get somebody to write something up. I wouldn’t mind moving back to L.A. to become a sitcom star. I never thought that would happen, but God puts things in front of us and it’s up to us to make the decisions to take it or turn it down.
