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

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12/30/05

Nat Newell
Oden is year's top sports story in area

1. Oden. The Wildcats' senior center is the top boys basketball player in the country. The National Basketball Association changed its draft rules, so he'll be required to attend college for at least one season. His signing with Ohio State University was broadcast on television in Columbus, Ohio. Eyes will remain on the 7-footer as he attempts to lead Lawrence North to a third straight Class 4A state championship.
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1/9/06

USA BASKETBALL
Oden an Olympic 'factor' in 2008?

Lawrence North star invited to be part of select team, has shot at making trip to Beijing

By Jeff Rabjohns
[email protected]

USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo wants Greg Oden -- possibly for the 2008 U.S. Olympic team.

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Colangelo said Oden, a 7-foot senior from Lawrence North High School, will be part of a "select team" invited to play against the team the U.S. will send to the 2006 World Championship in Japan and to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

The select team, Colangelo said, would comprise 10-12 young players, mainly college stars and young NBA players, who are in the pipeline to play for the United States in future Olympics. Depending on how Oden progresses, Colangelo said, the center "might be a factor in 2008."

Oden was the only high school player Colangelo mentioned in an interview Sunday with The Star. Other players mentioned previously by Colangelo include Duke senior J.J. Redick and New Orleans Hornets rookie Chris Paul.
Oden couldn't be reached Sunday, but he said during the summer he would be interested in the Olympic movement.

Colangelo said invitations for the Olympic team likely will go out by the NBA All-Star Game (Feb. 19) and invitations for the select team by June. The select team would scrimmage against the U.S. team this summer prior to the World Championship on Aug. 19-Sept. 3.

Call Star reporter Jeff Rabjohns at (317) 444-6183.

Copyright 2005 IndyStar.com. All rights reserved
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1/16/06

LAWRENCE NORTH AT NORTH CENTRAL 7:30 P.M. THURSDAY, ESPN2

For one, for all

Many have had a hand in Greg Oden's meteoric rise, which this week finds him on national TV again. One way or another, many also have a stake in his fortune. Here's a look at Team Oden

There was a time early this basketball season when it really hit Grant Nesbit -- the gulf between being a high school athletic director and being Greg Oden's athletic director.

Not a minute after handling a mundane issue involving a freshman athlete at Lawrence North High School, Nesbit was on the phone to pass along word to Reebok shoe maven Sonny Vaccaro that the Fox television network needed a $750,000 sponsor for a package of 10 high school games.

"I remember because someone said something to me," Nesbit recalled. "I just kind of chuckled and said, 'You know, if you can't find the comedy in that . . .' "

While Nesbit is hardly the most influential person in Oden's career, his role perhaps best reflects the evolution of high school sports and what goes into grooming, off the court, the most coveted basketball player who isn't in the NBA.

It has involved negotiating contracts for ESPN appearances, screening national media requests and evaluating what's appropriate in terms of corporate sponsor Reebok, out-of-state games and merchandise sales.

Sensing in the summer of 2004 that a tidal wave was coming, Nesbit called LeBron James' high school athletic director in Akron, Ohio, for advice.

"I'm not a businessman," Nesbit said. "I'm a 'kid' person."

Deal making

Like many local athletic directors at schools of his size, Nesbit, 30, receives a large salary -- $93,000, according to public records. Unlike most athletic directors, he has had to figure out what's a fair value for appearing on ESPN2.

He has negotiated the contracts for two of Lawrence North's three games on the network. (As the home team for Thursday's TV matchup, North Central signed that deal, though there was little question who was the main draw.)

"Going into this, I didn't know a thing (about television)," Nesbit said. "But I have not been afraid to ask a lot of people what they think and what they know."

Last summer, he even took a stab at eliminating the middleman, Paragon Marketing Group of Skokie, Ill., which secures teams, corporate sponsors and a venue, then sells the deal to ESPN. For December's game against Dayton (Ohio) Dunbar at Hinkle Fieldhouse, Nesbit tried to do it himself.

The effort failed because ESPN wouldn't negotiate with a freelancer when it had a package deal with Paragon. Still, based on what he learned, Nesbit estimated the sponsorships for a Lawrence North game on ESPN2 at $75,000. He learned that it was reasonable to ask for at least 15 percent of that. Lawrence North received $15,000 for the Dunbar game, three times as much as for last year's ESPN2 game against Poplar Bluff (Mo.) at Hinkle. The money goes to the school's athletic department.

For Thursday's game, North Central will get $1,500. Lawrence North receives nothing. North Central athletic director Chuck Jones said he had limited bargaining power because everyone involved knew the opportunity was so unique for his school and students. "Doing something the kids will be proud of is most important," Jones said.

The Fox deal, which would have included a game against Bloomington South at Assembly Hall, has apparently fallen through, Nesbit said.

Decisions, decisions

There were other financial decisions to make at Lawrence North. Nesbit and veteran coach Jack Keefer considered but decided not to sell jerseys with Oden's No. 50, a common practice in college sports. They believed it could have been lucrative, especially with Internet sales, but decided it would be exploitative and perhaps divisive among team members.

Also with Keefer, Nesbit decided not to turn Lawrence North's team into a traveling circus. Out-of-state promoters generally offered $10,000 plus expenses for a single event, Nesbit said. The Wildcats' lone out-of-state appearance is next month in Evanston, Ill., against suburban Chicago power Glenbrook North. Lawrence North will receive $10,000 plus expenses.

Indiana High School Athletic Association rules allow teams to compete within 300 miles of any point of the state border.

Even the Dayton Dunbar game could have been more lucrative -- $30,000 at least, Nesbit said -- had it been moved to Columbus, Ohio. That's where Oden and teammate Mike Conley, plus Dunbar's Daequan Cook, will play next year for Ohio State.

"We just didn't want anyone to say we exploited this young person," Nesbit said. "I think we can defend (ourselves) pretty well. There are certainly a lot more things we could have done but weren't comfortable doing."

Nesbit leaned on advice from Grant Innocenzi, LeBron James' athletic director at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. Innocenzi didn't have a peer to consult when the tidal wave hit his school. His coach was in his second season, not a veteran like Keefer. School officials estimated they made $400,000 in revenue during James' final season, according to The New York Times.

"We traveled all over the country, which I don't know was the best way to go," Innocenzi said. "You don't want to make it seem like you're playing college basketball already. But the rest of the kids on the team weren't going to the NBA. It meant a lot to them to play in (historic venues such as) Pauley Pavilion (in Los Angeles) and (The) Palestra (in Philadelphia)."

Nesbit took $11,000 for the school from Reebok in return for a program ad and, much more visibly, for using a news conference backdrop full of the company's logos.

When Oden and Conley announced their decision to attend Ohio State, that backdrop received national television exposure, solidly associating the brand with the young stars.

For years before Oden arrived, Keefer has had an arrangement with Reebok to outfit the team in its gear. Keefer said it involves only shoes, uniform, warm-ups and a bag, and he does not profit personally.

Said Nesbit: "That's one of those that if I do it again, maybe I try to get more out of it -- flat dollars on top of (merchandise). That was one I didn't interfere with. Jack had worked with these people for years."

Then there are the myriad media requests. Nesbit has accommodated the likes of Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News, but he drew the line when Maxim magazine wanted an interview with Oden. Too racy, not appropriate for high school, Nesbit explained.

MTV wanted to shadow Oden for several days for a show. So did production companies working with ESPN and the Discovery Channel. Nesbit and Keefer said no. Too disruptive.

"You have to remember, it's a school environment," Nesbit said. "We aren't trying to put Greg's face on everything. Will an agent in a couple years want to do that? Yeah."

Once in a lifetime

It could have been even crazier this season.

The NBA deflated some of the interest in Oden when it instituted a rule last year preventing high school players from going directly into the league.

Otherwise, Oden was projected as the No. 1 pick in this June's draft.

Though Oden insisted all along he wanted to go to college, there's little doubt Lawrence North's stands would have been filled with NBA scouts and agents.

"It would have been a zoo," Nesbit said. "That's the story of the year. What will he do?"

Lawrence North hasn't sold out any of its home games this season.

Nevertheless, Nesbit said boys basketball will have revenue of about $60,000. A normal season, he said, is about $20,000.

"I'm very cognizant this is a once-in-a-lifetime situation and I've tried to do my best to enjoy it while it's going on," Nesbit said.

"It's been a team effort -- with coach, assistant AD, principal, superintendent, Greg's mom -- to make this situation something we can feel good about afterwards."

Call Star reporter Mark Alesia at (317) 444-6039.

Copyright 2006 IndyStar.com. All rights reserved
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Oden update
• Don't blink: North Central's Eric Gordon isn't the only flashy scorer headed Lawrence North's way. On Feb. 11, Greg Oden and his Wildcats face Glenbrook North (Northbrook, Ill.) and star Jon Scheyer at Northwestern University. Scheyer, a 6-5 Duke signee ranked as the nation's 12th-best shooting guard by rivals.com, scored a believe-it-or-not nine points in 10 seconds, 21 points in 1:15 and 52 overall in an 85-79 loss to Proviso West that snapped the Spartans' 35-game winning streak. He reportedly collapsed with dehydration after the game and spent the night at a hospital, but was back in the lineup the next night. (In case you wondered, 21 points in 1:15 projects to 538 points for a 32-minute game.)
• Another SI appearance: Oden is pictured in the Jan. 9 issue of Sports Illustrated in an article about Ohio State, which is off to a surprising start one year ahead of the arrival of its heralded, Oden-led recruiting class. Speaking about coach Thad Matta targeting Oden so hard -- beginning before a rule change prevented a jump straight to the NBA -- North Carolina coach Roy Williams said, "Thad was just smarter than everyone else."
• Sign him up: Coming in at sixth on The Sporting News' 10 things to watch in 2006: "Big men on campus -- One NBA general manager's voice gets wistful as he discusses Ohio State-bound Greg Oden. 'I'd sign him today,' the GM says. 'He'd be on the floor tomorrow.' "



HIGH SCHOOL COACH
Jack Keefer
Under Keefer's tutelage, Oden has grown from a skinny 6-11 freshman who got pushed around and struggled with free throws into one of the best high school centers of all time. A third straight state title for Lawrence North would give Keefer four overall, tied for second in state history behind Bill Green's six. The three national TV games haven't hurt Keefer's stature, either.

COLLEGE COACH
Thad Matta
The Ohio State coach was hailed for landing the national Player of the Year; now it's left to see how much Matta can teach -- and get out of -- Oden in the one year he's expected to be in the program. He's already paying dividends: Networks are battling to arrange high-profile (and lucrative) matchups for the Buckeyes next season.

SUMMER COACH
Mike Conley Sr.
Conley has coached his son, Mike, and Oden since they were in sixth grade, and after last year some were calling Spiece Indy Heat the best summer team ever. Conley also has long been the lead adviser to Oden and his mother, Zoe, helping with the Ohio State decision and working with Reebok (which sponsors Spiece). As for rumors he'll someday be Oden's agent, Conley said, "I can't rule it out, but there are so many variables, who knows for sure?"

THE OLYMPIC CHIEF
Jerry Colangelo
The head of USA Basketball's Olympic effort has centered his return-to-glory plan on the next generation, with Oden as a chief target. The 7-footer will be part of a select team -- possibly as its youngest player -- that will scrimmage against the NBA-laden U.S. senior team next summer, and if he does well Oden could be in the mix for the 2008 Games, at age 20.

THE SHOE GURU
Sonny Vaccaro
The man who signed Michael Jordan to Nike and Kobe Bryant to Adidas now works for Reebok and has made no bones about targeting Oden as his next big catch. Reebok sponsors Oden's summer team and Lawrence North, and there's a Reebok rep in attendance at most Wildcats games. Vaccaro suffered a setback when the path straight to the NBA (and a shoe deal) was blocked, especially since Ohio State is contracted with Nike.

THE TV GUY
Rashid Ghazi
A partner in Paragon Marketing Group, Ghazi leads the trend of televising prep sports, and the past two years he has made Oden his star draw. Ghazi brokered the deals for all three of Lawrence North's games on ESPN2, which will give Oden one more national TV appearance than LeBron James had in high school. Ghazi says it hasn't been lucrative (declining to give details) but that it's full speed ahead.

THE BEST FRIEND
Mike Conley Jr.
No one has helped or been helped by Oden as directly as his longtime teammate. Conley knows better than anyone how to get the ball to the big guy, and in turn the extra attention down low has helped Conley; he's rated as one of the top three point guards in his class. The symbiotic relationship will continue at Ohio State . . . at least for a year.

MOM
Zoe Oden
A single working mother of two teenage boys, she has set a goal at once simple and incredibly difficult: Keep Greg a normal kid. She also tries to stay under the radar as much as possible, her appearance on HBO's "Costas Now" notwithstanding. But make no mistake, she said: All the big decisions go through her.
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Best part of the game: 5:25 in the 4th.

After the play, pops the ball around above the tiny defenders, taunting them (unintentionally perhaps :wink:). Gives the guy a little elbow under the chin.

(a few minutes before, oden had completely stuffed gordon but picked up a foul). On the next play, after a scramble for the loose ball, he sends Gordon's jumper into the next zip code.
 
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STUD!!!!!!!!!!!

There is no other way to put it. He is so dominate it is unbelievable. He put on an absolute show tonite. You know Matta was thinking man I wish he was on my team now, and Bruce Weber(who also attended the game) was thinking man I wish I could of got him.
 
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I have watched Oden's latest game this past week and here are my observations.....

-Simply a man among boys.
-Great footwork.
-Knows how to finish.
-Is always around the ball.
-Good passer out of the double team.
-Never leaves his feet on a shot fake.

Oden is simply very impressive, the only areas I see that he needs to improve on is developing a short range jumper and establishing better position down low but it is hard to establish yourself down there when three players are surrounding you on every play.

With all the better Big Ten big men leaving this year, who the heck is going to stop him next year?

As soon as he gets on campus he will be First Team All-American.
 
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bucknuts44820 said:
I have watched Oden's latest game this past week and here are my observations.....

-Simply a man among boys.
-Great footwork.
-Knows how to finish.
-Is always around the ball.
-Good passer out of the double team.
-Never leaves his feet on a shot fake.

Oden is simply very impressive, the only areas I see that he needs to improve on is developing a short range jumper and establishing better position down low but it is hard to establish yourself down there when three players are surrounding you on every play.

With all the better Big Ten big men leaving this year, who the heck is going to stop him next year?

As soon as he gets on campus he will be First Team All-American.
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Well he did leave his feet early the one time, when he swatted the crap out of that one shot that Gordan put up. It was obvious that he wasnt going to let him score that time as he was jumping as soon as Gordan went up.

I honestly cannot wait till he gets here. With Matta as the coach we are going to have a nice string of years.

Also I was watching college bball all day today and a lot of team don't even have guys over 6'9'' on their teams. Next year we will have Oden who is 7' then hopefully Lauderdale and Kosta two guys that are 7' and 6'11'' and then Mullens is 7' foot.

That height is just crazy.
 
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