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C Greg Oden (All B1G, All-American, Defensive Player of the Year, Butler Assistant Coach)

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Broken, not beat, Oden vows to return strong
By Marc J. Spears, Yahoo! Sports
Oct 20

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Greg Oden played in 21 games last season before breaking his left kneecap.
(NBAE/Getty Images)

Greg Oden(notes) missed his first NBA season after having surgery on his right knee. He lasted 13 minutes into his second season before injuring his right foot. His third season was cut short after 21 games after he broke his left kneecap ? an injury from which he?s still recovering more than 10 months later.

So it?s a fair question to ask: Is the Portland Trail Blazers? supposed franchise center simply prone to bad luck? Or is he on his way to becoming one of the league?s biggest busts?

Oden has his own answer.

?I?m not worried about people believing in me. I believe in myself,? he said. ?If you?re going to doubt me, doubt me. But I know what I can do, and I know I?m going to improve, and I know that I can bring a lot to this team.?
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http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=mc-odenblazers102010
 
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Greg Oden Update

"It wasn't like I was full going," Portland Trail Blazers center Greg Oden said after practice today. "I was the weak link out there. But I was still out there."
Oden told a group of reporters that he went through "most" of Blazers practice, including light five-on-five work. "I was very excited," Oden said. "You know, the first time out there, just looking around, head on a swivel, everybody moving fast, but once I got down to it, started playing, I felt comfortable out there.

"It felt good. As I got down into it, and started doing more, I felt more comfortable. I was just taking it in, trying to concentrate on what I was doing out there. I wasn't really thinking about the excitement and all that, I was just like, 'Alright, what defense are we in? Am I doing the right things? Making the right calls?'"
Oden went through the practice wearing a black leg sleeve and said he was experiencing stiffness in his knee afterwards. "It's a little tight. It got a little stiff since practice. It's a little stiff right now so I gotta ice it."

Asked if he was excited to be back doing five-on-five, Oden admitted that he was as nervous as he was excited. "I was worried. but it was fun. I got my blood moving and it felt good being out there. Coach basically told me, 'don't try to go full go, try go to 3/4 speed."

Oden's face went blank when a reporter asked him why he felt worried. "I don't know if you've ever gotten back [from an injury]," Oden said. "It was my first time actually playing five-on-five since the injury. Just being a little cautious about it. It takes a long time to trust it like you really want to."
Despite today's step forward, Oden is still preaching patience. "I'm definitely ready [mentally] to get out there but I'm not jumping too fast. I see you guys trying to hype it up a little bit more than me. I'm trying to make sure that I'm right when I get out there and improve what I'm doing." As such, Oden continued to refuse to put a timetable on his recovery, stating that his next step is "just improving from this. Continue to do my rehab stuff. Getting shots up. Doing a little bit of movement and stuff out on the court. Doing a little bit more and more with the team during the practice."

When will he be back? "It's whenever I feel like I can go out there and compete with the best."
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http://www.blazersedge.com/2010/10/25/1774037/monday-practice-report
 
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Greg Oden to Be Restricted Free Agent Next Summer
10/26/2010
By Chris Tomasson

It's official. Portland center Greg Oden will be a restricted free agent next summer.

While it's not a surprise, considering Oden has played in just 82 games in his first three seasons due to injuries, the 2007 NBA top draft pick will become the first No. 1 selection to not have signed a contract extension after his third season since Kwame Brown was taken by Washington in 2001 and became a restricted free agent in the summer of 2005.

Bill Duffy, head of BDA Sports, which represents Oden, confirmed to FanHouse on Tuesday that Oden will not sign an extension by Monday's deadline.

"There's too much that he needs to do,'' Duffy said of Oden, who still has yet to be cleared to play after suffering a serious knee injury last December and missing the rest of the season.

Duffy called it a mutual decision between Oden's camp and the Trail Blazers to not to pursue an extension. He said it never really was discussed.

"It's really a foregone conclusion,'' Duffy said. "To evaluate what he's done so far, it's incomplete.''
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http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/10/26/...ree-agent-next-summer/?a_dgi=aolshare_twitter
 
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Oden?s practice brings some optimism
On eve of opener, injured Blazers center works out
It's opening night at the Rose Garden for the Blazers.
By Matt Calkins
Columbian staff writer
Tuesday, October 26, 2010

TUALATIN ? Here it is, folks, the moment we?ve all been ? wait a minute, who is that?

The preseason has evaporated, games of true significance are upon us, and ? hold on, who are those reporters swarming?

The Blazers host the Phoenix Suns tonight in their regular-season debut, a night the city of Portland has marked on its calender since ? what? Greg Oden practiced?! And ran some 5-on-5, too?! Since when has Christmas landed in fall?

Two vibes emerged from Blazers practice Monday: Anticipation toward a definite, and enthusiasm toward an as-soon-as-possible.

Yes, the Blazers will meet Phoenix at the Rose Garden tonight, and players and coaches? thoughts on the matter will appear in a few paragraphs.

But there was also a certain 7-footer interacting with teammates in a way he has not for 10? months.

Oden, who ruptured his left patella last December, practiced ?lightly? Monday and took part in half-court 5-on-5 drills.

Does this mean he?s zeroing in a return date?

No.
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http://www.columbian.com/news/2010/oct/26/odens-practice-brings-some-optimism/
 
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Agent: Portland Trail Blazers' Greg Oden likely to be free agent at end of season
Oct 27, 2010
Written by Jeff Rabjohns

Former No. 1 NBA draft pick Greg Oden of Indianapolis likely will become a free agent at the end of the year.

Oden?s agent, Mike Conley Sr., said today it is ?unlikely? the 7-foot center will sign an extension with the Portland Trail Blazers by the Nov. 1 deadline, which would make him a restricted free agent at the end of the season.

Oden, a star at Lawrence North High School and Ohio State who was No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft, has played just 82 games due to various injuries and isn?t ready to start this season.

?Obviously on the team side, they have a lot of question marks on his health. On his side of it, as far as him negotiating for the most money possible, he?s not in the best bargaining position,? Conley Sr. said. ?It?s not the best opportunity for him at this point. If they want to give him the money we think he?s worth, he?ll sign.?
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http://www.indystar.com/article/201...-season?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|IndyStar.com

The unkept promise of Greg Oden
October, 27, 2010
By Henry Abbott

Greg Oden is everything he has been accused of being. He has missed so many games as to be certifiable as a horrible disappointment. (Is the Kevin Durant vs. Oden debate on hold, or dead?)

At the same time, as promised, in those times he has been on the court, he has produced, as promised, like the best young big man in the game. Even through the awkwardness of getting used to the league -- he has played just a season's worth of games -- he was a top-10 NBA player, according to PER, in his 21 games of last season. He is also one of the best young rebounders in NBA history.

But none of that matters when he's nursing an injury on the bench, as he's doing, once again, for the foreseeable future.

"It's all right," he says of his left knee, which has recovered from a broken kneecap, but is now burdened with "jumper's knee," a kind of tendinitis. "It has its good days and it has its better days. After a workout it gets a little stiff but that happens with everybody. Just a little bit more with me because of the equipment I have in there. Just normal stuff. After I work out, it's pretty sore, but I keep it moving.

"Whenever I feel that it's ready, and that I can go out there and do all the things that I'm capable of doing, that's when I'm going to come back. I'm not going to put a date on it, because that puts a lot of pressure, and usually just hypes up the media, because if I don't come back on that date they make it a big problem, and ask why didn't you come back on this day. I try to stay away from that."

Pressure is not Oden's thing. Not now. He admits, for instance, that he does not have the thickest skin when it comes to criticism.
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http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/20749/the-unkept-promise-of-greg-oden
 
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Giant disappointment? Greg Oden hasn't lived up to his NBA hype, but says it's not his fault
By James Oldham
[email protected]
Updated: Monday, November 1, 2010

Greg Oden is fed up. He's tired of hearing the media refer to him as a bust.

The 7-foot, 22-year-old former Buckeye center was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft. It's now 2010, and because of a myriad of injuries, Oden played in only 82 games in his first three seasons. Meanwhile, the player selected after him, Kevin Durant, won the league scoring title last year for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The simple fact that he's yet to remain healthy provides fuel for controversy that Oden said the media love to capitalize on.

"I know that I can play a big part in this league and definitely help my team win a lot of games," Oden said in an interview with The Lantern last week. "But a lot of people in the media like to talk smack and make things sound more evil than they actually are. Injuries are something you just can't control."

Oden was projected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft even before he left Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis. His list of awards included the 2006 Naismith Prep Player of the Year, Indiana's Mr. Basketball in 2006 and the two-time USA Today and Parade Magazine Player of the Year.

On June 29, 2005, Oden and former high school teammate Mike Conley Jr. announced they would be attending Ohio State. Oden was the centerpiece member of the heralded "Thad Five."

Oden averaged 15.7 points, 9.6 rebounds and 3.3 blocks in his only season as a Buckeye. He led the team to the National Championship against the defending champion Florida Gators, an 84-75 loss.

"I feel like if we had another chance, we would win that game," Oden said. "Get us on another day, when I was playing well and our threes were falling, and we definitely would have won that game."

Despite the losing effort at the end of his freshman year, Oden said that his year at OSU was probably the best of his life.

"Little things like hanging out in the dorms with my teammates, being around people while going to class and attending football games, I love everything about Columbus and Ohio State," Oden said.
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http://www.thelantern.com/sports/gi...ba-hype-but-says-it-s-not-his-fault-1.1737402

Blazers make right decision with Oden
Greg Jayne: Commentary
By Columbian Staff
Sunday, October 31, 2010

As personnel decisions go, this was an easy one. The difficulty will be in deciding what comes next.

The Trail Blazers have confirmed that they will not sign Greg Oden to a contract extension by Monday?s league deadline. That means the center will become a restricted free agent next summer, giving Portland the option to retain Oden by matching any offer he signs.

In the peripatetic machinations of NBA negotiations, this could be a risky maneuver. There?s no telling what the economic outlook of the league will be next summer. No telling whether there will be some team, one team, willing to sign Oden to an outlandish contract that is unreasonable for the Blazers to match.

So, yes, there is a risk.

But the aggravating part is that the risk is small. That there?s no reason to sign Oden to an extension at this point. That the former No. 1 overall draft pick hasn?t given the club a reason to lose sleep over the thought of losing him.
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http://www.columbian.com/news/2010/oct/31/blazers-make-right-decision-with-oden/
 
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Re: Despite the losing effort at the end of his freshman year, Oden said that his year at OSU was probably the best of his life. "Little things like hanging out in the dorms with my teammates, being around people while going to class and attending football games, I love everything about Columbus and Ohio State," Oden said.

That's nice to hear.

:osu:
 
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ScriptOhio;1803183; said:
Re: Despite the losing effort at the end of his freshman year, Oden said that his year at OSU was probably the best of his life. "Little things like hanging out in the dorms with my teammates, being around people while going to class and attending football games, I love everything about Columbus and Ohio State," Oden said.

That's nice to hear.

:osu:
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He obviously made the right call to leave school because he got paid right before starting to break down.

However, he was a kid who probably never wanted to leave and shouldn't have left college.. It's taken him up until about right now to really grow up and start being a professional.. His first 2-3 years in Portland you could tell he still wanted to be a kid, between going back to Ohio St. for the summer, taking classes at Portland St., going to college parties, etc..

His decision to go to the NBA was strictly financial IMO.. He loved and probably still does love the college life/atmosphere.

As for Cleveland signing him... I doubt that happens.. he would have to be injury plagued again this year, and then Cleveland would have to take an enormous risk and offer him a big contract that Portland won't match.

If he's able to play 60 games this year and continues to develop, Portland is gonna match w/e offer he gets
 
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Portland is on the cusp. I doubt they would invest heavily in Oden with his injury troubles when they need cap space to bring in proven free agents.

Other teams that are going nowhere, like Cleveland (sorry), could take a chance on him. I know I'd like to see it... and it would probably help the expected decrease in attendance next year.
 
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