I think Oden is going to win Most Improved Player this year. I think this will happen due to him being in vastly better shape, but also due to the fact that he was vastly under rated in his rookie season with little allowance given for first year post MF. It's also a great story for the media, the fallen hero torn down by his enemies (never mind the media being hypocrites, but I repeat myself) valiantly rising from the ashes to reclaim the crown of his destiny. I expect Oden to average a 20 PER give or take 1/2 a PER (lol that sounds silly). I think Oden will be good for 16 points 12 boards and 2.5 blocks a game. I think he averages around 3 fouls a game still but gets more court time. I think Andre Miller will be dynamite for Oden. The pick and roll is going to be something special with a healthy Oden and Miller. Oden is probably good for at least one Oop a game from 'Dre. All in all I look forward to it and wouldn't be surprised if he blows these predictions away. No later then Jan 1st, 2010 he will start to really get in his groove by November 2011 I expect him to be dominating. And I say this all in honor of International Greg Oden Week.
That wold be nice if it happens (the MIP award and the other numbers), but honestly I just want to see him average 30 minutes a game and stay healthy, everything after that is going to be gravy for me.
per 36 minutes last year oden averaged 14.8, 11.6, and 1.9(blocks). him averaging 16, 12, and 2.5 would really only mean he made a slight improvement in his play, but was able to stay on the court longer. i'm not sure that i'd expect andre miller to be great for oden. the one year he actually played with a good big man was on the clippers. that was by far the worst season of miller's career on a clipper team that vastly underachieved expectations(they dropped 12 wins by swapping darius miles and jeff mcinnis for andre miller)
A single season is really not much of a sample size. It's been pointed out a few times that Miller is one of the best point guards in a long time at throwing alley-oops, and he did it a lot in Denver. He simply hasn't had much chance to play with top big men. His proven abilities (his excellent drive-and-dish abilities, his excellent alley-oop passing) seem like excellent fits with Aldridge and Oden.
oden will still average around 10 pts but be way more effective. Roy, Aldridge, Miller, and Rudy will take most of the points
So you think he'll only average 20 minutes per game again? I don't expect Greg to be an offensive juggernaut, but paired up with an actual lob throwing point guard and hopefully less foul trouble he should be able to 'organically' add at least 3 or 4 points per game just by staying on the floor and cleaning up a similar proportion of garbage points.
a single season is not a huge sample size, but i was just pointing out that miller has only played with a good big man one season of his career. the idea that he's going to be great for aldridge/oden would make sense if miller had proven that he gets the best out of big men, but that isn't the case.
He scored 9 PPG playing 20 MPG and not nearly at full strength. I think it would be something of a disaster if he didn't improve on that at all. And he scored very efficiently last season. I think he'll be closer to 15 PPG on similarly efficient shooting, so long as he's healthy and manages to keep his fouls down.
MIP is in the realm of possibility. If he's working as hard as we've been told, his game could improve a lot.
Well I was trying to be reasonable. Keep in mind we are adding Miller and while Oden should get more touches he is still going to be a glass man and defensive presence for the most part. I actually see 16 points a game as a fairly significant improvement both in terms of staying on the court but also in offensive contribution. It could go as high as 18 IF we decide to make Oden a focal point of the offense. I think that might be part of why we brought Miller in. If Oden exceeds my projected numbers I would say he's a virtual lock for the MIP. Remember, he was horribly, HORRIBLY underrated last year. I doubt most fans of other teams have any idea that mr. "bust" Oden averaged an 18.1 PER coming off of MF. Alot of players in the league would kill for an 18 PER. I expect Oden to add at least two PER points next year and go for 20+. I think that the rediscovery of Oden as a positive presence in the league might sway things in his favor and barring an unexpected breakout of another 2nd or 3rd year player I think MIP is a real possibility for GO.
Miller has not been my number one PG choice over these past years of debating how to get a decent PG in a Blazers uni. However, Miller's game and style, as long as we put a three point shooter on the court with him (get well Martell), is going to be very good for Oden and Aldridge. Very, very good. I don't believe Miller is going to come here and put himself above Roy and Aldridge and Oden. He is going to work with our guys to make them better. He is going to pick and roll (if Nate will call the damn play), drive and dish, and lob for dunks. Miller is going to average 10 assists per game and Oden is going to be a beast. I agree with your 'bold' prediction, Idog. Oden is at least going to be a front runner for MIP. All he has to do is stay out of foul trouble, and his increased lateral quickness will help a lot with that.
