Lamar Odom fires back at Stephen A Smith’s comments about his crack addiction

Lamar Odom returned fire at ESPN First Take personality Stephen A Smith through a letter written by his legal counsel on Saturday, wishing the company “voice their disdain” for his “vulgar” and “grotesque” comments about Odom’s past addiction problems.

“Mr. Smith chose to jokingly disparage Lamar having a disease,” the letter wrote. “To say that his conduct was outrageous and unacceptable does not scratch the surface.

“We hope those at ESPN will actively voice their disdain for Mr. Smith’s inappropriate statement and take the proper action to support those that are fighting this disease. We would hope that your network would use this situation as an opportunity to become more actively involved in this case.”

Smith plastered Odom in a rant on First Take on Thursday, where he blasted Phil Jackson’s decision-making as president of the Knicks. Jackson’s first move as team president was to sign Odom, who was in a well-documented battle with drug addiction at the time.

“His very first move as an executive was to sign Lamar Odom ... who was on crack!” Smith screamed. “Listen, I love Lamar Odom the person, and God bless him. We’re wishing nothing but the best. But metaphorically speaking, his first move as the executive of the New York Knicks was to sign Lamar Odom, who was on crack.”

Smith, a native of Queens, N.Y., is known for not only for his scorching hot sports takes but for his unwavering commitment to his New York Knicks. The team has gone 80-166 since Jackson took over as team president four years ago.

It’s safe to say Jackson deserves some of the heat that’s been dished his way, especially after giving Joakim Noah $72 million and pushing to trade both Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis this summer, but Odom was just an innocent bystander until Smith dragged him into this.

Maybe it’s safe to say Stephen A. crossed the line this time.