Robin PottratzIs Greg Oden a draft bust?
October 29th 2008 19:53
Lets flash back to March of 2007. My father and I took our usual venture to the Big Ten basketball tournament in Chicago, IL. In past years, the Big Ten conference has been known for having some parity among its teams. The 2006-2007 season was significantly different however. That season produced one of the greatest teams and greatest freshman classes in the history of the Big Ten and the NCAA as a whole. The team that I am talking about was the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Their freshmen class included:
Deaquan Cook, a shooting guard who now plays for the Miami Heat in the NBA.
David Lighty, a forward who is still at OSU.
Mike Conley Jr. at point guard, who now plays for the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA.
and of course, the main event:
Greg Oden - 7'1, 250 lbs, the man who was immediately branded to be the "next Bill Russell."
During his college career, Oden lived up to the hype. He was simply a dominating figure, he had a soft shooting touch, could clog up the middle and block shots, and he was as intimidating of a player as there had been in recent memory. He, along with that heralded freshman class ran rough shod through the Big Ten conference. In the conference tournament, there wasn't a team who came within 10-12 points of beating them. Oden was his usual monstorous self, blocking shots and imposing his will. He eventually led the team to the NCAA Tournament final, where they lost to repeat champions, the Florida Gators.
As expected Oden, along with Conley and Cook, decided to leave college early to seek their fortunes in the NBA. Oden had been projected to be the number 1 pick and there was very little reason to see why not. Draft night came and as expected, Oden was selected #1 overall by the Portland Trail Blazers, who were greatly considered a team on a meteoric rise with players like Brandon Roy and Lamarcus Aldridge. Oden was considered the last piece of the puzzle and hopes were at an all time high for the Blazers.
Until...
During off-season workouts, Greg Oden injured his knee. It was then determined that he would have three of the most dreaded words in sports: Micro Fracture Surgery. There had already been one major horror story case of micro fracture surgery, and it kept Phoenix Suns phenom Amare Stoudamire on the shelf for a better part of 2 years. Oden had the surgery in September of 2007 and was forced to miss the entire 2007-2008 season. Doctors anticipated a full recovery and it was realized one year later. Oden returned to the court and participated in workouts and preseason games.
It appeared that the wait was finally over. Last night was supposed to be glorious. The Portland Trail Blazers were at full strength and playing against the best that the NBA's Western Conference had to offer...Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. The game began and all was well...for about 15 minutes. Midway through the first quarter, Portland was stung with an all too familiar sight...Greg Oden had injured his foot, left the game at halftime and didn't return. According to SI.com, Oden used crutches to get out of the locker room after the game and was driven on a cart to the team bus. The most troubling sign of all was that the X-ray that he took in the locker room was "inconclusive." He will have an MRI today to determine the extent of the injury, which is now being called a "sprained foot."
There is no question that Oden now has the stigma of being called "fragile" or "injury prone." However, I can't help but ask if we should start calling him by another term..."draft bust." If his injuries don't let up, Greg Oden could end up being the biggest draft bust in the History of the NBA, and ironically the biggest bust currently also comes from the Trail Blazers when Sam Bowie was drafted ahead of some guy named Michael Jordan.
I may be jumping the gun on calling Oden a bust, but he has a large mountain to climb in order to shake that stigma. Look at the solid careers that other lottery picks of that year like Kevin Durant and Al Horford are having. Oden may not be able to compete. Oden may prove me wrong, but as of right now, October 29th, 2008, I will declare that Greg Oden is a draft bust up to this point. When you are supposed to be the next Bill Russell and all you have to show for it in your first 18 months of the league is 1 1/2 quarters played and two large injuries, that is a crushing disapointment that is hard to shake.
I hope that Greg Oden comes back and proves me wrong because it would be such a waste of talent if he couldn't. In my heart of hearts however, I believe that the curtain may have come down on Greg Oden's legend before it even began.
Their freshmen class included:
Deaquan Cook, a shooting guard who now plays for the Miami Heat in the NBA.
David Lighty, a forward who is still at OSU.
Mike Conley Jr. at point guard, who now plays for the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA.
and of course, the main event:
Greg Oden - 7'1, 250 lbs, the man who was immediately branded to be the "next Bill Russell."
During his college career, Oden lived up to the hype. He was simply a dominating figure, he had a soft shooting touch, could clog up the middle and block shots, and he was as intimidating of a player as there had been in recent memory. He, along with that heralded freshman class ran rough shod through the Big Ten conference. In the conference tournament, there wasn't a team who came within 10-12 points of beating them. Oden was his usual monstorous self, blocking shots and imposing his will. He eventually led the team to the NCAA Tournament final, where they lost to repeat champions, the Florida Gators.
As expected Oden, along with Conley and Cook, decided to leave college early to seek their fortunes in the NBA. Oden had been projected to be the number 1 pick and there was very little reason to see why not. Draft night came and as expected, Oden was selected #1 overall by the Portland Trail Blazers, who were greatly considered a team on a meteoric rise with players like Brandon Roy and Lamarcus Aldridge. Oden was considered the last piece of the puzzle and hopes were at an all time high for the Blazers.
Until...
During off-season workouts, Greg Oden injured his knee. It was then determined that he would have three of the most dreaded words in sports: Micro Fracture Surgery. There had already been one major horror story case of micro fracture surgery, and it kept Phoenix Suns phenom Amare Stoudamire on the shelf for a better part of 2 years. Oden had the surgery in September of 2007 and was forced to miss the entire 2007-2008 season. Doctors anticipated a full recovery and it was realized one year later. Oden returned to the court and participated in workouts and preseason games.
It appeared that the wait was finally over. Last night was supposed to be glorious. The Portland Trail Blazers were at full strength and playing against the best that the NBA's Western Conference had to offer...Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. The game began and all was well...for about 15 minutes. Midway through the first quarter, Portland was stung with an all too familiar sight...Greg Oden had injured his foot, left the game at halftime and didn't return. According to SI.com, Oden used crutches to get out of the locker room after the game and was driven on a cart to the team bus. The most troubling sign of all was that the X-ray that he took in the locker room was "inconclusive." He will have an MRI today to determine the extent of the injury, which is now being called a "sprained foot."
There is no question that Oden now has the stigma of being called "fragile" or "injury prone." However, I can't help but ask if we should start calling him by another term..."draft bust." If his injuries don't let up, Greg Oden could end up being the biggest draft bust in the History of the NBA, and ironically the biggest bust currently also comes from the Trail Blazers when Sam Bowie was drafted ahead of some guy named Michael Jordan.
I may be jumping the gun on calling Oden a bust, but he has a large mountain to climb in order to shake that stigma. Look at the solid careers that other lottery picks of that year like Kevin Durant and Al Horford are having. Oden may not be able to compete. Oden may prove me wrong, but as of right now, October 29th, 2008, I will declare that Greg Oden is a draft bust up to this point. When you are supposed to be the next Bill Russell and all you have to show for it in your first 18 months of the league is 1 1/2 quarters played and two large injuries, that is a crushing disapointment that is hard to shake.
I hope that Greg Oden comes back and proves me wrong because it would be such a waste of talent if he couldn't. In my heart of hearts however, I believe that the curtain may have come down on Greg Oden's legend before it even began.
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