LOADINGERROR LOADINGFormer NBA star Lamar Odom was booed and heckled Thursday night when he arrived for an ethically dubious dinner President Donald Trump hosted for the top investors in his $TRUMP meme coin.“Lamar, you’re better than this,” someone shouted outside the dinner venue at Trump’s luxury golf club in Northern Virginia as Odom moved through a crowd of booing protesters. “Lamar, what are you doing? Shame on you, Lamar.”Advertisement
Odom, who played in the NBA from 1999 to 2014 and won championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009 and 2010, was among the 220 people deemed a top holder of Trump’s meme coin ― a type of cryptocurrency based on an internet joke or public figure ― from April 23 to May 12, earning him an invite to the event billed as “the most EXCLUSIVE INVITATION in the World.” Odom has been promoting his efforts to get into the event on social media and using his attendance as a platform to boost his own meme coin.“Thanks to President Trump for supporting the meme philosophy,” Odom posted on social media after the event.Advertisement
I’m just about to pass through security and officially walk into the Trump Gala.Honestly… I’m fired up.Think about it—what meme coin has ever done this?$ODOM isn’t just a token, it’s taking the stage at a presidential gala tonight!By the way, Bitcoin is smashing through… pic.twitter.com/7eI5SezPLh— LAMAR ODOM (@LamarOdom) May 22, 2025Odom is also famous for his televised wedding and marriage to Khloé Kardashian, which ended in divorce in 2016. In 2015, he was hospitalized in a comatose state after he was found unconscious in a Nevada brothel and later sought treatment for addiction.Others in attendance at the dinner included Chinese billionaire Justin Sun, who runs the crypto platform Tron and earned the top spot on the $TRUMP leaderboard by spending more than $40 million on the meme coin.Advertisement
“I’m very excited to meet him and discuss about crypto’s future,” Sun told The New York Times.Korean cryptocurrency executive Sangrok Oh, another attendee, also told the Times he viewed the dinner as a “fundraiser” for Trump, who he believes will “always be good to his sponsors.”Media wasn’t allowed inside the event, and Trump arrived and left without speaking to the press, but attendees shared with reporters that Trump only spoke for about 15-20 minutes and made minimal contact with the crowd despite billing the dinner as an “intimate” event.20 Years Of Free JournalismYour Support Fuels Our MissionYour Support Fuels Our MissionFor two decades, HuffPost has been fearless, unflinching, and relentless in pursuit of the truth. Support our mission to keep us around for the next 20 — we can't do this without you.We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.20 Years Of Free JournalismFor two decades, HuffPost has been fearless, unflinching, and relentless in pursuit of the truth. Support our mission to keep us around for the next 20 — we can't do this without you.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.“He helicoptered in, he helicoptered out. We didn’t really get to shake hands with him or anything, but it was a really interesting group of crypto people all in the same room,”a 32-year-old attendee from Texas, who declined to state his name, told NBC News. “It’s about what I expected. I got the chance to be pretty close to the president when he was giving his speech.”Advertisement
Another attendee named Christoph Heuermann posted on Instagram that Trump didn’t “interact with the crowd other than enjoying being celebrated” and claimed that even the top holders of the coin ― whom Trump promised “an ultra-exclusive private VIP Reception with the President” ― didn’t get to “speak or even shake hands with the president.”“It was still well worth it to experience the president live and watch his mightily secured arrival and departure,” Heuermann wrote.RelatedDonald Trumplamar odomcryptocurrencymemecoinTrump Will Have 'Intimate' Dinner With Whoever Spends The Most On His MemecoinTrump Hosts Top Crypto Investors As Some Fear He's Putting Personal Profits FirstCompany Boasts Spending Up To $20 Million On Trump Crypto Coin To Buy Influence