This Sportning News writer said the (Oden) Blazer dynasty is already over

Fire away with your hate emails blazer fans... but he speaks the cold hard truth and doesnt even mention brandons knee woes. Dont shoot the messenger LMAO http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=tsn-whatdoesmarcuscambys


Perhaps you saw our early morning story that Marcus Camby is close to a two-year, $21-million extension with the Blazers. That situation hasn’t changed terribly—they’re still not quite there—but Yahoo!’s Marc Spears has updated that the deal now involves $5 million in performance bonuses after the league rejected the first extension agreed to by Camby and the team.

This is an important move for Portland that solidifies their post situation for next year and beyond. Even at 36, Camby remains an excellent rebounder (11.8 per game this season, good enough for second in the league) and shot-blocker (2.0 per game, which put him at fifth in the NBA).

But in clarifying their starting center position, it also casts Greg Oden’s(notes) future with the team into serious doubt. Three years ago, Portland GM Kevin Pritchard selected him first-overall with an eye towards multiple championships. Now, it looks like he’ll enter next season—a contract year before restricted free agency—on the bench. (Yes, that’s also the lockout summer, but for now let’s assume that we’ll see a speedy resolution. I’m an optimist like that.)

So what does this mean for Oden? Camby can’t play a ton of minutes at his advanced age, but he would likely remain the team’s primary center in all situations. Oden, then, would be forced to fend for any minutes he can get, which would be even more difficult if the Blazers don’t find a way to move Joel Przybilla(notes) (who has a $7.4-million player option for next season) to a team in need of a shot-blocker.

What that means is that Oden will enter free agency as a bench player, not a starter. Some team will likely see fit to treat him like a starter-level talent—when healthy, he still looks pretty impressive—which will force Portland to make a decision about how Oden fits into their future plans with a non-rookie contract.


The Blazers have proven committed to their young core of Oden, Brandon Roy(notes), and LaMarcus Aldridge(notes), maintaining that they’re still the group who will lead them to a championship. To some extent, that’s been Pritchard’s group, and if he’s let go this summer, a personnel change would make sense. Either way, though, Oden leaving town would mark the end of an era in Portland, one that hasn’t yet worked out as well as planned.

However, moving to a new city might actually be in Oden’s best interests. While he’s struggled with injuries, his career is by no means already defined—the raw talent remains whenever he’s able to get on the floor. In Portland, though, he’ll always remind people that he once held promise as the defining big man of a generation, and that the team could have drafted Kevin Durant(notes). With another franchise, he’d have the opportunity for a new start with more realistic expectations.

Camby’s deal doesn’t guarantee that Oden will move on next summer, but it takes us one step closer to it. What once seemed like a dynasty in the making could be over after only four seasons!

 

what an idiot piece, no surprise who posted it

 

Completely misreading the tea-leaves. What it means is that Joel Pryzbilla dynasty is over, which is a real shame - because there are not many players one would like to see succeed like Joel.

 

Right.... signing Camby is all about Oden.... not the fact that Joel Przybilla is pretty much done for next season? Who were we supposed to get to backup Oden? Howard again?

I will admit, the future of Oden is clouded by uncertainty. We have no idea what to expect from him at this point, but that doesn't mean that the window is closed. If we could go back and draft Durant, I'd bet Pritchard would probably do it, but we can't and we have Oden.

I think this team still has the pieces to be a contender. I'm not as optimistic as I once was, mostly because I have not been impressed with Aldridge. I think LMA is a solid starter, and he might log an All-Star appearance or two, but he isn't going to be the dominant player that I had hoped he would be. At this point it is Brandon Roy and.... a bunch of possibilities. I think Batum might end up a better second option than Aldridge. Or if Oden is healthy, and he is able to build on what he had during this season, he could also be a second option. Not sure yet.

However, the window is definitely still open.

 

i read it on the internet, it must be true

 

so you really think the blazers will break teh bank to please oden???? hahahaha you are nuts.

i get the sense allen could care less about oden. its kpee who worships that waste of space.

all you need to know about greg... he check sfor updates on his computer when teh blazers are playing. I wonder if his mom gets NBA tv? Maybe thats his excuse for missing the playoffs. I mean he spends most of his time in INdiana rather then Portland. Sounds like this guy is really into the Blazers!

Chances he resigns here... less then 30% IMO.

Please BUMP this when oden leaves

 

There's not even a byline attached to the article ... and yes I agree with others above that whoever penned it, completely mis-read what signing Camby means -- Joel is done as a Blazer, and the team isn't real confident that he'll even be available until mid-December. As for Oden, he should be able to play alongside Camby (who is not a low post scorer and does all of his damage off of tip-ins and that janky fifteen footer he likes to hoist up 3 or 4 times a game).

This is a two year deal for a 36 year old center, not a 5 year deal for a 28 year old guy. This author (whoever he is) doesn't seem to be blessed with much insight.

 

I don't think there's any way that Greg expects to get max money, and he isn't a free agent until the summer of 2011 so I'm not terribly worried. There won't be nearly as many teams with all this cap space.

 

Always good for a laugh! Thanks Mixum!

 

Lol what a dumb article.

 

Hey didn't you say you'd leave this forum for a year if we won 50 games or finished ahead of OKC or something? Well, get on it.

 

Blazers did exactly what i said they would...

I said way back in December when Greg got hurt, the BLazers need to trade for a guy like Hayward and resign him for the next few seasons. Everyone killed me on here and screamed.... "no we have joel and the gimp... we are set." As i told you then... you trade for a center since joel wouldnt be back anyway and getting the center provides insurance for the gimp. It also got us to the playoffs. Its just amazing how so many on here said we didnt need a trade. L M A O

lol... well pryz is done in Portland and Greg looks to be next. Thank god we got camby.

 

To please him? No. Will they let him go into restricted free agency if some kind of extension can't be worked out? Probably. But I don't think the team (or anybody else for that matter) is going to break the bank to get him even if it went all the way to free agency, he's likely to get a Bynum-like deal with around a base 10-11 million per year salary with some unlikely bonuses attached to make it worth his while, and to also protect whatever team ends up with (which I expect to be the Blazers unless another major setback occurs).

 

Mixum, you of all people know after our game one win that the national media has no clue about the Blazers other than the stat sheet. They don't know about the way the team runs. Thats why they all said we would get blown out w/o Roy. This guy sees us signing camby and sees he is a center and automatically assumes that Oden is done...

 

You don't qualify, Rudy.

 

Re: Blazers did exactly what i said they would...

Fixed.

[video=youtube;uv_ut2lK_U4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uv_ut2lK_U4[/video]

 

I view our C position as one of the strongest in the league so completely dismiss this as a factor limiting our dynasty hopes.

Unfortunately our PG position is far bleaker than it was this time last year, and we have 0% indication that it will improve this summer as we have traded all our valuable pieces that we can spare.

Our dynasty hopes rely on some 2nd rounder pulling a TP-like surprise on the league. We need to find an undiscovered super talent we can sign cheap.

 

everyones wrong.... except the posters here lmao

 

Yeah, only a TRUE Blazers fan would LMAO at the news that the Blazers dynasty is over.

Go Blazers