Do you guys see how Greg is playing? I am not going to go on some huge rant, but he just really looks bad out there. Looking terrible. So sluggish. No passion. No confidence. What the heck is his problem? Does he need a shrink like Martell did a couple years ago? I can't lie. I always wonder what would have happened if we got Durant. Yeah it might mean we wouldn't have got Bayless more then likely. But at this point who cares. We would have ended up in the 13-20 ish range and we could have got a serviceable backup center for Joel. Javale McGee or Roy Hibbert... someone like that. Lineup would be... Blake\Sergio Roy\Rudy Durant\Outlaw\Batum? LMA\Frye Joel\McGee or Hibbert I hate to say it but I think I would prefer that lineup at this point. I want to be wrong and I hope Oden comes out of his shell. I am just thinking of how good we would be with the above lineup.
he'll be fine. I do see the Martell syndrome here.....and no....i wouldn't still rather have Durant....long term, Center is a better prospect.
GO is going to have to figure it out for himself. There's nothing that a bunch of internet losers like us can do.
What I do notice is Brook Lopez is having a better rookie season than Oden is. Oden is much more physically dominant, but Lopez is the more skilled of the two. Oden is trying to get his footing in this league and Brook is already making strides.
Greg Oden reminds me of Joakim Noah/Tyrus Thomas in terms of laziness out there on the court. He's obviously much more skilled, but he posesses some traits of some monumental draft busts of the past few years.
Martell wasn't considered anywhere near the player Oden was when they were drafted. Maybe it is time for posters here to stop railing against the Cowherds and the Quicks of the world and start seeing the disinterested player who 8k showed up for in Pioneer Square in 2007.
Player one: 23 MPG, 8 RPG, 1.39 BPG, 6.3 PPG Player two: 21.5 MPG, 7.4 RPG, 1.53 BPG, 7.6 PPG One of these players is a rookie coming off microfracture surgery who is, after 17 games, a bust. The other is an eight year veteran playing the best basketball of his career. Get a grip people, god damn. Give the guy a break.
But Greg Oden is the #1 pick. Joel Pryzbrilla is the type of guy that could net you Kirk Hinirch in a trade. Greg Oden is the kind of guy that could net you an older star like Dirk Nowitzki.
My point is for how many people screaming about how bad he is, versus how they talk about Joel, the two are playing pretty damn close. Greg isn't playing up to his potential, but he sure as hell isn't as bad as everyone seems to want to make him out to be.
At this point we'd be much better off with Al Horford or Spencer Hawes. But I sure as hell wouldn't trade Oden for either for those guys. I think eventually Oden will dominate like nobody else in the 2007 draft will But it's gonna take a while. I was initially thinking he'd be one of the better centers in the league late in his first or by the end of his second season if things went slowly. But now I'm thinking it won't be until his third or forth year when he's able to be consistently productive.
Who is screaming? I just want the guy to show like he cares about the game. At his size and strength, he should be more of a factor every night.
Take a look at just about any game thread. Maybe he cares so much hes getting himself down. You have no idea. None of us do.
I can witness effort and engagement. Oden seems to be lacking on some nights in both of these categories. I don't care about the numbers. Really, that does not matter to me. But effort? I hope I'm wrong, and since it is subjective, I just may be wrong.
Wow, I see a game where Oden posts up on the right block, the point guard is standing there waiting to give him the ball and then when Oden gets position and is ready to get the ball the point guard swings the ball to the other guard on the other side of the court. I am starting to think that he is getting frustrated simply because of how stupid our coach is.
I hope none of you people who ride Oden's games to a good or bad point and make irrational one quarter/one half/one game judgements live anywhere near a bridge.
Greg's only at about 80% percent. It's going to take him a full season to get back to 100%. We should start seeing his true promise late in the season or in the playoffs. But it won't be until next year that you see Greg playing at 100%
Drama Queens. Oden is a work in progress, people. He wasn't going to come in and set the world on fire- not even right out of college; we all saw his record setting proficiency at fouling in the 07 summer league. His physical gifts, which he was able to coast on in HS and College, are not enough in the NBA. Greg needs some time to learn post play. He needs to figure out how to really use his size to his advantage. He is still not in the best shape. I know it's hard to be patient, but we need to give him a season or two before we decide if he is a bust. Thing is, there is no point in imagining what could have been w/ Durant. We didn't pick him. And anyway, WTF has he done to help OKC win to this point?
I like to compare Oden with other centers in the league, not the lofty expectation from draft night. Using that comparison, he's a solid rookie center. He'll never be the 2nd coming of Shaq, but I think we can expect some Ben Wallace rebounding and defense in the next couple seasons.
