Lamar Odom gave the Mavericks 23 solid minutes off the bench on Saturday, notching 10 points (4-of-5 FGs), two 3-pointers and five assists.

It's a start anyway -- Odom hadn't scored double-digit points since January 27th. He's nowhere near offering value in 12-team leagues, but is worth keeping an eye on in case he picks it up over the second half of the season.

Lamar Odom (illness) returned to action on Friday, scoring six points on 1-of-7 shooting with six rebounds and three assists in 20 minutes.

Sadly, Odom tried to say that he has his conditioning under control before the game, so if we take him at his word then he simply sucks now. We're kidding, as the problem is between the ears and in his heart along with his conditioning. Until those things change he's a waiver wire guy.

Lamar Odom (illness) and Brendan Haywood (back) are both expected to play in Friday's game against the Pacers.

It looks like they will each miss just one game. Odom will return to his bench gig, a role in which he is averaging just 20.2 minutes and 6.9 points per game in. He'll only see a bump in that playing time if Shawn Marion (probable, knee) is a surprise scratch.

Lamar Odom (illness) won't play vs. the Thunder on Wednesday.

Odom has been a dud all season and probably shouldn't have been in any active lineups anyway. The Mavs have considered giving him some time off to get in better shape, but so far that hasn't happened. Consider him day-to-day with his stomach ailment.

Lamar Odom played just 15 minutes on Monday, scoring seven points on 3-of-7 shooting (including a three) with five rebounds, two assists, and one steal.

Odom had the chance to prove himself following his return to L.A., and also while Dirk Nowitzki was out, but he hasn't made enough of an impression to carve out a consistent, productive role for the Mavs. Odom has probably been dropped in many 12-team leagues, but this should be the last straw for owners holding out hope.

Lamar Odom had a season-high 19 points, five rebounds and three 3-pointers on 7-of-12 shooting in 32 minutes of Friday's win over the Jazz.

Odom has been dreadful this year and Dirk Nowitzki is due back Sunday, which will send Odom to the bench. He was fine tonight, but we need to see this kind of production again before recommending he be in starting fantasy lineups.

The Mavericks are contemplating sitting Lamar Odom down for a few games for him to work on his conditioning, similar to the plan the team took with Dirk Nowitzki this past week.

After struggling through a 2-for-14 shooting night against the T-Wolves, Odom was benched during the third quarter on Wednesday. The team has recently discussed sitting Odom for a stretch of games, much like the plan they took with Nowitzki, to allow him to focus solely on doing what is necessary to get his game on track. Because of his late trade to the Mavericks, Odom didn't arrive in Dallas until several days after training camp started, which may partially explain for his early-season struggles. This plan is not set in stone, but is just another reason to make sure Odom is out of your lineups for the foreseeable future.

Despite his year-long struggles in Dallas, head coach Rick Carlisle still believes Lamar Odom can be a key cog this season.

Odom has been starting in place of Dirk Nowitzki (knee, conditioning) and has had some good games (16-4-2 on Saturday) mixed in with some clunkers (5 points on 2-for-14 shooting, four rebounds on Wednesday). "We're going to keep supporting and believing in him. He's going to get better and better," said Carlisle. With Nowitzki back possibly as soon as Sunday, Odom's window to improve is closing quickly. We'd definitely have him on benches until he can provide some consistent stat lines.

Lamar Odom started for injured Dirk Nowitzki (knee, conditioning) on Monday, scoring 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting (including two threes) with three rebounds and five assists in 28 minutes.

Slowly but steadily Odom is starting to flash some of his old form and he should be owned in all 12-team leagues for the chance he can fully regain it. He's still befuddling observers with his substandard play, but the versatility and upside he brings is just too much to ignore for fantasy owners and Dallas could use it, too.

Lamar Odom started at PF on Saturday and notched 16 points, four rebounds, two assists and three turnovers in the Mavericks' road victory.

Odom played 26 minutes. He's slated to start at least the next three games while Dirk Nowitzki rests his knee, so hopefully he can get himself going after a painfully slow start to the season. If you've owned him since draft day, the time has finally come to run him out there.

Lamar Odom scored 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting (including a three) with one rebound and one assist in 20 minutes of action on Thursday.

Unfortunately this is a step forward for Odom. There is reason to see if Vince Carter's foot injury can help augment the modest momentum Odom has created with his recent play, but he still isn't a must-own player in 12-team leagues. We speculated that Odom might get out of his depressed state following the Laker game, and the jury is still out on that.

Lamar Odom scored 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting (including two threes) with four rebounds and two assists in 24 minutes of action against his old Lakers teammates on Monday.

We pegged this as a litmus test for his value and overall he passed. He cared about the game, showed extra effort during warmups and at halftime, and also had the support of Rick Carlisle -- who was rebounding for him before the game. The question for Odom isn't necessarily talent, but motivation and conditioning. Coming back to L.A. probably helped him turn the page, and it's possible this could be a turning point.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said Lamar Odom is adjusting to primarily playing SF, and conceded that minutes are harder to come by in Dallas.

"We've got [Odom], Dirk, Marion and Vince Carter kind of sharing those forward minutes," Carlisle said. "So there are just less minutes available." Odom is also struggling mentally and getting used to the Mavs' style, but at least he's shown some signs of life in recent games.

Lamar Odom recently revealed that he was "real close" to taking a season away from basketball after a summer full of difficult events.

Odom said he wasn't mentally prepared to help a team, which has been obvious early in the season, but he's finally starting to come around.

Lamar Odom played 23 minutes in the Mavs' blowout win on Friday, scoring six points on 3-of-8 shooting with six rebounds, one assist, and one block.

Odom goes back to L.A. to play the Lakers on Monday in a defining moment for his season. Whether he gets up for the game, hides from it, his coach decides to play him heavily in it, or his coach uses it to punish him with -- we will know exactly where Odom is mentally (and to a lesser degree physically) after it. If you want to target a very low low-ball offer in advance of the game, or pick him up off the wire, you'll either sneak in before the bounceback effort or know you can drop him immediately.

Chris Mannix of SI.com cites Dallas team sources saying Lamar Odom "has often appeared stressed by what they believe is the mental burden of an overwhelming offseason."

Odom has had to cope with the murder of a cousin over the summer, and was a passenger in a car accident that resulted in the death of a 15-year-old. He's also still reeling from the trade to Dallas, saying he "can't allow" himself to watch Lakers games. The link below depicts a player who sounds lost, and it's not a shock given what he's been through. Odom is averaging career-lows of 6.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 20 minutes per game, and played just 15 minutes in Dallas' win over Boston on Wednesday.

The Mavericks are expected to buy out Lamar Odom following this season.

Odom is set to earn $8.2 million in 2012-13. He's not getting that. The Mavs will buy him out for $2.4 million, making him an unrestricted free agent. Odom has topped 30 minutes in a game just once this season and is shooting 29.2 percent from the floor. We're not buying low on a 32-year-old lame duck.

Lamar Odom upped his minutes in Thursday's blowout loss, playing 26 total and finishing with six points on 3-of-10 shooting with eight rebounds, three turnovers, and no other stats.

It feels like we're making excuses for him, but with the rest of the team awful tonight, too, it's hard to hold this over his head. Odom has been a mess since showing up to camp lazy, whiny, and out-of-shape, but he's progressing in his conditioning and the production will rise.

Lamar Odom had 15 points, five rebounds, two steals and a 3-pointer in Wednesday's win, hitting 6-of-12 shots in 23 minutes.

He didn't record an assist, but at this point, owners will take whatever they can get out of Odom. As we've said before, he'll eventually get used to his new home and team, and the minutes should follow soon.

Lamar Odom scored eight points on 2-of-4 shooting (no threes) with five rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes off the bench on Monday.

Odom looked a little bit better tonight and may be getting his conditioning back. The buy low window is closing up, and pretty soon he'll be playing 30 mpg.