Miami HEAT forward Lamar Odom was named the NBA’s Eastern Conference Player of the Week this afternoon after leading the HEAT to a 2-1 week with victories over Milwaukee and Sacramento. Odom becomes the eighth player in HEAT history to earn NBA Player of the Week honors and the second HEAT player to receive the honors in the last three weeks. Rookie Dwyane Wade captured the honors on Feb. 23. This marks just the third time in franchise history, and the first time since the 1999-2000 season, that Miami has captured the weekly honors twice in a season. HEAT players have now been bestowed Player of the Week honors on 13 occasions. This marks the first time in his career that Odom has been named Player of the Week. Houston center Yao Ming was named the NBA’s Western Conference Player of the Week this afternoon.

“I think Lamar is very deserving of the award,” said HEAT Head Coach Stan Van Gundy. “The game he turned in against Sacramento is one of the best individual games played in the NBA this year and came against the team with the top record in the league. Lamar can do so many different things and we have asked him to do everything and he has responded.”

Odom, who signed with Miami as a free agent on Aug. 27, 2003, averaged 23 points, 13.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.67 steals and 42.3 minutes in the HEAT’s three games last week. He shot 46.9 percent (23-49) from the floor and 68.8 percent (22-32) from the foul line and compiled a stellar 3.29:1 assist-to-turnover ratio (23 assists-seven turnovers). In his three games last week he recorded a triple-double against Sacramento, a double-double against Toronto and missed a double-double versus Milwaukee by a single assist.

Odom’s 30-point, 19-rebound, 11-assist effort in Miami’s 102-96 win against Sacramento on Mar. 6 was one of the best individual performances in franchise history. It marked just the fourth triple-double in the 16-year history of the franchise and ended a drought of 739 games (longest in the NBA) without a triple-double for the Miami HEAT. Odom joins Rory Sparrow, Steve Smith and Billy Owens as the only HEAT players to achieve the feat. It marked the eighth time in his career Odom has recorded a triple-double and the first since Mar. 31, 2001 versus Cleveland when he totaled 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He became just the 16th player in the NBA this season to record a triple-double. Additionally, he became just the sixth player in the NBA since 1989 to amass at least 30 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists in a game and the first since Kobe Bryant on Nov. 1, 2002. The 30 points he scored against the Kings were a season high and marked his fifth career 30-point effort, the 19 rebounds established a career high, the 11 assists tied his career high, recorded on five previous occasions, and the 11 field goals made tied his season high. The 60 combined points, rebounds and assists marked the second highest single-game total in franchise history topped only by Alonzo Mourning’s total of 63 (50 points, 12 rebounds and one assist) against Washington on Mar. 29, 1996.

In his first game last week, against Toronto on Mar. 2, Odom had team highs in both points (23) and rebounds (game-high 14) and moved into a tie with Billy Thompson for tenth place on the HEAT’s all-time double-double list as he recorded his 28th double-double of the season. Two nights later against Milwaukee he just missed a double-double as he finished with 16 points and registered game highs in assists (nine) and rebounds (seven) as the HEAT defeated the Bucks, 104-98.

The Jamaica, NY native enters tomorrow’s game against the Orlando Magic averaging 17.4 points, a team-high 9.8 rebounds, a team-high 4.5 assists, 1.06 steals, a team-high 0.95 blocks and a team-high 38.4 minutes. He has connected on 42.5 percent (387-910) of his field goal attempts, 28.3 percent (51-180) of his three-point attempts and 74.3 percent (251-338) of his free throw attempts. He tops the team in starts (62), minutes played (2,380), field goals made, field goals attempted, free throws made, free throws attempted, defensive rebounds (489), total rebounds (608) and blocks (59). Additionally, he leads the HEAT in double-doubles (29), double-figure scoring efforts (57), double-figure rebound efforts (29) and double-figure assist efforts (two). He has scored at least 20 points on 21 occasions and has recorded one 30-point effort. Odom has led the HEAT in scoring 19 times, in rebounds a team-high 37 times, in assists on 22 occasions, in blocks a team-high 31 times, in steals on 13 occasions and in minutes played a team-high 29 times.

Below is a list of previous HEAT Player of the Week recipients:

Rony Seikaly - Mar. 11, 1990

Rony Seikaly - Mar. 7, 1993

Glen Rice - Nov. 28, 1993

Chris Gatling - Mar. 24, 1996

Tim Hardaway - Dec. 29, 1996

Alonzo Mourning - Feb. 16, 1997

Alonzo Mourning - Mar. 29, 1998

Alonzo Mourning - Mar. 14, 1999

Alonzo Mourning - Dec. 13, 1999

Alonzo Mourning - Apr. 10, 2000

Eddie Jones - Jan. 7, 2002

Dwyane Wade - Feb. 23, 2004

NBA 30-Point, 15-Rebound 10-Assist Games since April 1989:

Lamar Odom	30 points-19 rebounds-11 assists	vs. Sacramento	3-6-04
Kobe Bryant	33 points-15 rebounds-12 assists	@ L.A. Clippers	11-1-02
Antoine Walker	30 points-19 rebounds-10 assists	vs. Milwaukee	3-8-00
Grant Hill	34 points-15 rebounds-14 assists	@ L.A. Lakers	1-18-97
Derrick Coleman	33 points-15 rebounds-10 assists	vs. Boston	4-15-93
Charles Barkley	31 points-16 rebounds-11 assists	vs. Washington	4-23-89