A plus of the Comcast fiasco is that I've noticed Greg looks a lot slimmer the past week or so. Listening to 3/4 of the games on the radio is OK, but what I've really noticed in the sporadic TV games is how Oden is starting to look less like Shaq-lite and more like Greg Oden circa 2007. It's a bit like when you run into someone you haven't seen for a few months who has dropped weight. For those who see them every day, it isn't a striking difference. For those who see only a before/after, the change is striking. Oden looks a lot thinner in his neck and his arms, and I think that's a good thing. Oden seems to be finding his comfort zone as both a player and in what size is best for him to be the player he wants to be. He's going to improve immensely as the season progresses.
Good point. Another thing I'm noticing is his ability to get off the ground faster. Much faster than at the beginning of the year. It's just going to take a little more time. I have a feeling his 18/12 games will be more frequent than his 8/5 games going forward. He had foul "trouble" against the Cavs (i put "trouble" in quotes because the refs really fucked up on a couple of his "foul" calls), and played only 25 minutes, but still was two boards from yet another double double.
Yep, I thought I saw it. Expect Oden to improve for the rest of the season regardless of who the offense runs through. 9 offensive rebounds is sick for any NBA player, and that creates offense.
I seriously can't believe that he would play into game shape as the season progressed. I also can't believe that he's getting comfortable out there with each and every game. I mean, he was the #1 draft pick and was dubbed the 40-year old 7 ft. black Jesus and was supposed to walk on water and take us to the finals this year! I said in the preseason that we wouldn't even be seeing the real Greg Oden until next season, and at the earliest towards the end of this season. People are way too unrealistic with their expectations for a guy coming of major knee surgery. I still think Greg is in pain a lot of the time but you don't hear anything about it because he's not bitching about it. He's a warrior.
