Former NBA player Lamar Odom shared a letter to ESPN from his lawyer, Saam Zangeneh, in a tweet on Friday that addressed comments made by ESPN's Stephen A. Smith on First Take earlier this week. In a rant against current New York Knicks president and former L.A. Lakers coach Phil Jackson, Smith said, "I love Lamar Odom the person, and God bless him and 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!"

The response from Odom's lawyer called Smith's words "grotesque" and "vulgar" and called on ESPN to "voice their disdain" for the "inappropriate" statement. Odom has struggled with drugs for years and was twice suspended for violating the NBA's anti-drug policies early in his career. Jackson signed Odom to the Knicks in 2013, but he did not end up playing for the team and was waived a year later.

— Matt Wilstein