Subscribe Feed (RSS)I’m not going to go overboard here but after watching two scrimmages — and Coach Nate McMillan was very generous Thursday, by the way, giving us a pretty long look at an officiated one — I think I can say for sure that a lot of what’s being said about Greg Oden is true.
He’s running better, for sure. He seems to jump well. He’s being aggressive and much more animated with his teammates. He’s finished his chances around the basket and looks more comfortable on the floor. I don’t see a lot of the awkwardness we saw last season. It’s all good so far — I just want to wait a little bit longer before going too nuts about it.
This guy is so critical to the team’s success that his development is obviously of major importance. That’s not exactly a scoop. But I want to be careful before a major evaluation — let’s see what we think after some exhibition-game outings.
After he shot a lot of free throws (his touch looks good but he was off a little), I asked him a few questions about his microfractured knee — which was totally naked and free of any wraps, braces or sleeves.
“It feels good,” he said. “No reason to use a brace. Feels fine. I mean, I don’t remember how it felt before the injury but it feels real good now.”
I chided him a little for no recent blog posts and he smiled.
“It’s something I definitely need to do,” he said. “But there’s not a lot going on right now. I’m going to blog about training camp. But a lot of times after the morning practice, I just go back and sleep.”
And then he made a pretty good point.
“Everybody blogs in Portland,” he said with a grin. “Whenever I go out somewhere, even to the store, somebody blogs about it. So I don’t have to.”
Does he feel a little bit like he’s living in a fishbowl in Portland?
“Yes, in this town I do,” he said.
But as I told him, he’s one man who is going to stand out in a crowd no matter where he goes. Not just because of his height, either – he’s very distinguished looking. Iconic, almost. He’s always going to be recognized.
I don’t think I’d like that over an entire lifetime. Sometimes, you realize it’s nice to be just another short bald guy like me.
“I don’t think I’d like that over an entire lifetime. Sometimes, you realize it’s nice to be just another short bald guy like me.”
Amen!!!
I like how humble and down to earth Oden seems. Hopefully he can stay healthy and show more of his true potential.
I sympathize completely with Greg Oden’s plight. While I might not be a celebrity like him, my incredible good looks and natural charm mean I’m always the center of attention. It can be frustrating sometimes when you wish you could just blend in with all the short, bald people around you. Instead I have to deal with women throwing their underwear in my face and handing me their numbers when all I’m trying to do is pick up some milk on my way home from the office.
But I’m getting off topic. The reason I really wanted to reply to your post was to say how refreshing it is to see men embracing their baldness for a change. All too many resort to wigs, mysterious creams, bizarre surgeries, or ridiculous hair styles (Jason Quick) to limit or mask their baldness, when ultimately they only succeed in drawing additional attention to their point of embarrassment.
OH-OH! Sign #2! Sign #1 was a tiny glimpse of his returned athleticism with Nate’s physical test yesterday and Oden did very gazelle well. Now today we have Dwight Jaynes sounding a positive note that the off season hype may well be real. Saying the clumsy, awkward footwork has faded and he is finishing shots around the rim! OH-OH! Ok, ok, yea we need to see more before we go nuts. But I am just about to go nuts! That feeling I first had when the Trailblazers fell in that pile of the number one pick. That feeling of “this is gonna be huge!” I had during the pre-draft workouts and the actual picking of Oden is working it’s way back into my brain! Can’t wait to see Oden play again for myself.
I agree. It is a good sign when Dwight starts sounding even vaguely optimistic.
Where’s Franklin?
The trouble with trolls is they are nowhere to be found when the billygoat appears…
Great news. The knee is finally healed!!!
Dwight, any takes on the love affair that continues with Mike Rice and Steve Blake? That was a little ridiculous on Talking Ball the other night.
Why would you not start Miller and Oden if they are ready. Absolute no brainer.
exactly Arvydas…time to allow the cream to the top!
You have to start Oden even if he’s not ready. We need to know what we have before deciding whether or not to keep him.
Of course you keep him. Right now he’s one of the top centers in the league. You may not get the value out of him you once hoped for, but Oden needs to stay a Blazer. And I believe when it’s all said and done, he will be right up there as one of the greats.
Yeah, Dwight is a cranky old cynic like me. I think he’s a little too happy now though. But, I’ll have to see Greg in action during the regular season. When Oden said he would rather be at home than attending that rookie game for the All Star break last year I wondered where his heart is. Could you imagine Larry Bird, or Magic Johnson commenting like that when they were rookies? I don’t think so. Charles Barkley was right for once when he said “basketball chose Oden, Oden didn’t choose basketball.”
I hope I’m wrong by the way. I just don’t see that fire in his belly. He has to start demanding that ball down in the low post to get his teammates a little breathing room. When Greg sets those picks on the outside he has to roll to the basket more aggressively after getting the rub off! Plain and simple.
It’s hard to be aggressive when you’re body’s breaking down. If Oden truly is healthy now, you’ll see the same player that lead Ohio St to the title game three years ago.
Well if Barkley is your go to guy for sage advice I think Oden will be an All-Star this season just as he hopes. I will take solace in the fact that Barkley is never right about anything. You admit that yourself. Then you quote him?
Flat out Oden is maturing. He has went through alot of adversity and criticism and has now came out the otherside…the boy is now a man
He needed to get away and gather himself which he did. Mentally he is solid and now his game will begin to grow
Good news for us Blazer fans
Remember when Kevin Duckworth was playing and had weight issues? I seem to remember him saying that fans would come up to him while he was shopping at the grocery store and question him about items in his shopping cart.
Maybe it would be helpful if we let Greg have some privacy. Let’s take another approach.
Remember when Madonna made a movie here and the Oregonian had a contest to see who could get the best picture of her? Everybody in Portland bagged it and the winner was a picture of a religious statue of “Madonna with Child”.
That’s the level of Portland cool that we need here. My hope is that Greg Oden enjoys Portland so much that he goes on living here after his playing days are over. I think he’s a quality individual and I’m glad he’s here.
Looking for me EngineerScotty?
I’m not going anywhere and my prediction of Greg being a big bust remains firmly in place. He will never live up to the hype and will always be the mistake pick in front of Durant.
Hindsight is 20/20 but it’s worth noting that the entire city of Portland wanted Oden while KP pushed hard to draft Durant after his work out.
Impressive and hollow conjecture. Kudos.
Where are you coming up with this? I remember KP coming out after the Oden selection saying: “Was there ever really any doubt?” with a big grin on his face.
Are you saying that was all an act? He had been overruled by the city of Portland and was now trying to put out his best happy face to make Oden think he wanted him?
Ah, there you are.
He’s looking good in preseason. Barring a setback, I think its unlikely that Oden will be a “bust”.
Lemme ask you a question: Who do you think will have a better career–Durant, or Roy?
Knee Jerk,
Is that insider info about KP wanting to draft Durant? This is the first I heard about it. I know he loved Durant, but who KP actually wanted has never been made public.
The reason why Oden is so important is because he represents Portland’s best shot at developing an inside scoring presence. His defense will help, too, of course, but the Blazers will be fine in that department with or without him. But offensively, the truth is that this team really struggles against good defenses, playoff defenses, and that’s not likely to change until the Blazers develop a legitimate post-up game that can be counted on in the last two minutes. Maybe Aldridge will turn out to be that guy, but Oden already has a God-given advantage over 90 percent of the centers in the league and Portland would be better of if it found a way to flex that muscle.
Animated is spelled animated. Not annimated.
Feel free to delete this (or not) if you fix it (or don’t)
Everyone talks about hindsight and drafting Durant but what you have to realize is Durant was handed a franchise, he got unlimited shots and was allowed to make all the mistakes he wanted. He is a phenomal talent but if he came to Portland he flat out would have been a different player. He probably would have been awesome but he wouldn’t have got the offense he gets now, especially in a slower more structured system. If Oden does pan as a dominate center the Blazers will be set for a title, perhaps more than if they had Durant. Remember Roy is on the team and he is the primary offensive weapon, handles the ball alot, and takes a good deal of shots.
Ash, were also in charge of Sam Bowie getting chosen instead of me?