Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle expressed disappointment with Lamar Odom's ongoing absence from the team and bluntly stated that the forward will face scrutiny upon his return, from owner Mark Cuban to the players in the locker room.

Odom will play Saturday night for the Mavs' D-League affiliate in nearby Frisco and then is expected to re-join the Mavs for the first time since Feb. 20 when the team travels to Oklahoma City for Monday's game, Carlisle said.
Odom left the Mavs on Feb. 22 to tend to a family matter and missed his fourth consecutive game Friday night when Dallas played New Orleans. He will also miss Saturday's game against the Utah Jazz. Odom left the team to attend to his ill father in Los Angeles, sources told ESPNDallas.com.

The Mavs need Odom's presence off the bench in the midst of nine games in 12 nights, the most grueling stretch of the season.

"Mark asks a fundamental question of anybody in our franchise: Are they in or are they not in?" Carlisle said. "Our fans want to know that Lamar's in. Our players want to know that Lamar's in. It's not about how many points he's scoring or rebounds; those things are a factor. Our fans, our players want to see the guy playing like his pants are on fire and we haven't seen that so far and that's got to change."

Texas Legends owner and Mavericks president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson confirmed Friday that it was Odom's idea to play with the Legends first.

Carlisle said he would expect that Odom will address his teammates before Monday's big road game against the Western Conference-leading Thunder.

"It's got to be few words and strong action and it's got to go from there, and I'm sure he'll address the team," Carlisle said. "But, from this point going forward it's attitude and action.

"We're going to do everything we can to get the guy ready to play ... but he's well aware now of exactly what's expected. And it's not about the stats. It's about how he approaches it in terms of his actions on the court, his engagement in the game, being into it and intensity, passion, all those kind of things."

Carlisle acknowledged that Odom is dealing with a personal issue, but he said he does not know specific details. Even so, Carlisle said that Odom's underwhelming season, the worst in his 13-year career, combined with the off-court drama, is wearing thin on a veteran core of players attempting to defend its championship.

"There is a personal issue here and we do not know the extent of it or the details of it," Carlisle said. "There is a fine line between compassion, which our owner is showing, and gross insensitivity."