Lamar Odom could hire super-lawyer Robert Shapiro -- with a big ‘if’

Veteran NBA player Lamar Odom’s loved ones may want former O.J. Simpson attorney and LegalZoom founder Robert Shapiro to represent Odom in his DUI arrest.

But Shapiro says that these days he is not about getting his clients the least amount of punishment but about getting them better -- and that’s a requirement for those who want the benefit of his legal skills.

The lawyer, whose son suffered a drug-related death in 2005, wants to represent only those people willing to seek treatment to overcome their addictions, several sources said.

Shapiro was recruited by Odom’s wife, Khloe Kardashian Odom, and her family to help him get treatment for an unspecified addiction, according to sources.

Shapiro is longtime friend of the family who once shared the defense table with Robert Kardashian, Kardashian Odom’s father, as part of the “Dream Team” that won a not-guilty verdict for Simpson in the killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.

Shapiro recently successfully represented Kardashian Odom’s brother, Rob Kardashian, in a battery case.

In 2006, Shapiro founded the Brent Shapiro Foundation for Alcohol and Drug Awareness and has since raised hundreds of thousands of dollars at events designed to increase awareness and help provide treatment and research.

Before attending USC, the lawyer’s son Brent Shapiro had been to rehab several times, but by his early 20s he had turned his life around. He was 18 months’ sober when on Oct. 9, 2005, he drank alcohol and took Ecstasy and then died.

Odom, 33, was released from custody Friday morning after spending about 3½ hours in jail for his arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence. He posted $15,000 bond and is expected to appear in Van Nuys Superior Court on Sept. 27.

The 6-foot-10 forward, who most recently played with the Clippers and is now a free agent, was arrested Friday morning after a California Highway Patrol officer observed him driving erratically on the 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley, officials said.

DOCUMENT: Lamar Odom’s arrest report

CHP officials said Odom was in a white Mercedes sport utility vehicle eastbound on the 101 Freeway near Sepulveda Boulevard just before 4 a.m. when he was spotted driving below freeway speeds, about 50 mph.

A CHP report noted that Odom was driving in a “serpentine manner.” He showed signs of being under the influence of either drugs or alcohol and failed a field sobriety test, according to the CHP.

At the Van Nuys jail, Odom refused all chemical tests and was booked without incident, CHP officials said. He was taken into custody at 5:01 a.m. and released at 8:33 a.m.

Odom made headlines in recent weeks for alleged drug use, including reports last weekend that he was missing after a fight with Kardashian Odom.

His agent told ESPN that the basketball player was “not missing,” and a source told the outlet that Odom was at a Los Angeles hotel as friends tried to help him with a drug problem.

Kardashian Odom tweeted about the reports, saying it was “really hard to sit here and listen to people talk … about my family.”

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richard.winton@latimes.com