http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writ...oden/index.htmlIf Ohio State freshman phenom Greg Oden needs any help in deciding whether to stay in school or jump to the NBA, he might want to place a call to Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy.Roy is more than the odds-on favorite to win this year's Rookie of the Year award. He's also the latest Exhibit A in the case to be made for staying in school.Five years ago as a high school star in the state of Washington, Roy declared for the NBA draft. He ultimately withdrew his name (after a particularly bad workout with the Blazers of all teams) and decided instead to attend the University of Washington.Roy wound up staying all four years, and went on to become Pac-10 Player of the Year as a senior and the sixth overall pick in last June's draft."I talked to him the year he was talking about coming out and going pro, and I didn't think it was a good move for him," Blazers coach Nate McMillan recalled Monday night before his team's game in Chicago. "Turns out, it has worked out real good for him. He had a real good college career. His game grew and he had success. As a result, he's now a very mature player."I wanted to ask Roy about his decision to stay in college Monday, and how much he thought it had boosted his overall career. Unfortunately, the 6-6 swingman wasn't at the United Center. It turns out he had to miss the game because his girlfriend had gone into labor delivering their first child, and he had to fly back to Seattle to be at her side.But anybody who has seen Roy play this season can tell instantly that he's not a typical rookie. He carries himself on and off the court with the poise and confidence of a veteran. Indeed, McMillan often runs the ball through his hands at the end of games."He's really taken the reins of the team," Blazers director of player personnel Kevin Pritchard said. "Down the stretch, he takes big shots. We've had probably eight or nine games where he's made a shot or had an assist at the end [to tie the game or take the lead]. He wants the ball, and Nate believes in him."He's just an extremely mature kid. It's the first thing you notice about him when you meet him. The way he talks and deals with people -- for a rookie, it's amazing."That's why Roy's success this season is so interesting against the backdrop of this week's Final Four.Is a player like Oden, who reportedly enjoys college and is in no hurry to join the NBA, better off waiting a few years to turn pro and really developing his game so that he's able to light up the NBA right away?Or should he take the sure money now, even if it means he might get lost in the shuffle his first few seasons on an NBA bench and perhaps lose confidence and never blossom into the player he could be?It's easy to say a player should do the former and bypass the NBA's riches. But how many of us would actually do it? As McMillan said, "What happens if you tear up a knee?"Yet in Roy's case, the decision to wait seems so clearly to have worked out to his benefit. He will probably have a much better pro career now than he would have had he joined the league as a high schooler five years ago. He will likely be Rookie of the Year. He will get more endorsements. He will be a better and more confident player. He might even make more money in the long run.What would Roy tell Oden if the 7-foot Ohio State phenom called him to ask for advice? I wasn't able to find out Monday night.But, according to McMillan, Roy does have a message for fellow Seattle native and current Washington freshman 7-footer Spencer Hawes as he gets set to decide whether or not to turn pro."I talked to Brandon a few weeks ago, and he said he wants to talk to Spencer Hawes about staying in school," McMillan said. "He thinks it would be the right thing for him to do."Obviously some of these points have been brought up before but there's also some good points in here. Interesting story.
I don't understand the point this guys making....Greg Oden and Brandon Roy during they're freshman seasons were completely opposite....Greg Oden was a prodigy, leading the #1 team, Brandon Roy was a nice guard who put up 12ppg on an average team....Greg Oden has been considered the 1st pick for the last 3 years....Brandon Roy barely a first rounder until last season. There's no need for Oden to come back, for Brandon Roy it was more needed....Usually things written by SI.com writers make little sense...like this one.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (BrewCityBuck @ Mar 28 2007, 06:20 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I don't understand the point this guys making....Greg Oden and Brandon Roy during they're freshman seasons were completely opposite....Greg Oden was a prodigy, leading the #1 team, Brandon Roy was a nice guard who put up 12ppg on an average team....Greg Oden has been considered the 1st pick for the last 3 years....Brandon Roy barely a first rounder until last season. There's no need for Oden to come back, for Brandon Roy it was more needed....Usually things written by SI.com writers make little sense...like this one.</div>I think what it was saying was that it matured Roy. If Oden matures and develops his game, he will be an unstopabble force come 4 years from now, he will defeintely win ROY.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (BrewCityBuck @ Mar 28 2007, 06:35 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>He doesn't need 4 years in college....</div>He probably doesn't need it to be superstar in this league. But we will never how great he would have been if took 4 years of college, he would absolutely dominate.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (RaptorFan#1 @ Mar 28 2007, 06:04 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>He probably doesn't need it to be superstar in this league. But we will never how great he would have been if took 4 years of college, he would absolutely dominate.</div> What an the hell are you talking about?
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (BrewCityBuck @ Mar 29 2007, 12:28 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>What an the hell are you talking about?</div>He's saying that 4 years in college could turn Greg Oden into a complete beast. I disagree. Look at the guys who stuck around in college - they are all mature and complete and ready to play in the NBA right away. Greg Oden is already that way. There is no reason for him to stick around - sure, he may develop even more in colelge but there are a few who can go to the NBA right away (like Lebron) and already be ready.
Stupid article by a stupid person on a stupid site. Stupid post. Thanks a lot for sharing that garbage, PFF.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Something-To-Say @ Mar 29 2007, 05:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Stupid article by a stupid person on a stupid site. Stupid post. Thanks a lot for sharing that garbage, PFF.</div>If the thing he was talking about worked for a player recently, why is it stupid?
Because it is. "Hey Greg Oden, #1 HS player and center prodigy thats been covered in newspapers for the last 4 years and who helped lead the #1 team in the country, look at what Brandon Roy did, after be a second round pick and averaging 12ppg, he stayed in school and became a well-rounded player'.... Come on....he's comparing apples and oranges and it makes little sense which STS has pointed out. Greg Oden is a prodigy, everyone with a brain knew he was leaving, giving Brandon Roy as an example makes little sense at all....
I agree with BCB and S2SDumb article...Brandon Roy and Greg Oden are completely uncomparable4 years of college helped Brandon Roy but it doesn't mean it would considerably help Oden...not by much if at allCollege just isn't for some people..it was for Brandon Roy..maybe it isn't for Greg OdenI don't get why people say "if he took 4 years of college he'd dominate"He's gonna dominate regardless of how many years of college he takes
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (RaptorFan#1 @ Mar 29 2007, 05:39 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>If the thing he was talking about worked for a player recently, why is it stupid?</div>In short, Roy was not the player 5 years ago that Oden is today. Oden is ready to be in the NBA.
