If he ever gets over 20ppg in his career i would be very surprised... I think the guy will be about a 18/14/3 in his prime. But he will be fine. Once he is in amazing shape, this guy is going to be very good. I think in the last month of the year, he will be getting 14 and 10 and 2. But I do not think he will ever be an OFFENSIVE STAR... He won't... simple as that. LeBron, Kobe, McGrady, Wade those are offensive STARS. Oden won't be, i don't think... an offensive STAR should be near 30ppg and dominant on the offensive end. I think his overall game will qualify him as a star.
The very trade that you propose in your signature... takes away from any credibility you have.. which in turn shows the knowledge in the quoted post.
Great take, and pretty much what I think as well. Not too far off of what Cowherd is saying either. Blazer fans need to realize that the days of Wilt Chamberlain numbers are over, and Portland already has three better offensive players in Roy/LMA/Rudy, with Outlaw being instant offense when the team can't get a good look.
Just went and watched the other Oden videos on youtube. That one dunk in summer league where he took one step and took off is the only thing in those videos that he may not be able to do again. I say may because he just looks like a bit bigger and out of shape version of his former self. I know we all think the team lies about his explosiveness being back, but I think they are somewhat correct. When he gathers himself and isn't sucking wind, he can get up pretty good even now. The real difference I saw was in the speed at which his feet moved on the floor. That isn't gone because of the MF itself, just the year off. I think so anyway.
Why does he keep saying dude? Colin is a douche bag. I try to like him cuz he is from here, but he is such a god damn douche bag.
Are we listening to the same audio clip? Cowherd called him "closer to Benoit Benjamin than Wilt". He said he'd never be a great offensive player. He said he has an "old body". He's treating Oden like an offensive liability for the Blazers. It's ridiculous. I don't know why you keep nudging Colin's points nearer to rational thought when they're clearly NOT thought out. He didn't even care to know Oden's age with certainty. Ed O.
Colin is a legend ONLY in his mind. "Small guy sydnrome" is his problem. I watch his show on comcast sports and it is bizzare but entertaining. I think it makes me grateful that I am me and NOT HIM. The ONLY reason it is on in the am in our home is because my son laughs at him.
man, can people STFU about Oden for ONE minute and let him play more than 2 weeks? He is going to be a stud, just give him time. Media is pissing me off. Dwight looked pretty good, not great his rookie year, he has turned out well.
Patrick Ewing, above average? You mean First-Ballot-Hall-Of-Famer Patrick Ewing? You mean the guy with these stats? http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=EWINGPA01 BTW, look at the bottom of that page where they score him on the HOF Monitor and compare him to other players' careers.
Those scoring stats will likely have more to do with the team he's on rather than his ability. When you have three or four other guys who are a threat to put up 20 every night, he's not going to feel the pressure to score that Shaq, Hakeem, Ewing or Robinson did.
Yeah, exactly. Patrick Ewing was one of the ten greatest centers ever. He wasn't Shaq, Robinson, Olajuwon, Chamberlain, Abdul-Jabbar or Russell...but that's a pretty stringent definition of great. He was probably the seventh best center ever, or in that range. If Oden became Patrick Ewing, I'd be extremely pleased. That would be a franchise superstar.
Cowherd is right about one thing, I believe that Oden does need to develop his offensive game, but that comes in time and I'm okay with that. Portland has Roy, Aldridge, Rudy, and countless other players to fill up that part of the stat sheet. What I want to see from Oden mostly this season is controlling the paint and sending a message that you'll be challenged each and every time you drive to the basket. Oden is playing himself into NBA shape right now, I'm really surprised that people (Fans & Media) expect him to start the season ripping down backboards and sending rejectiions into the 30th row. Dude was out for 16 months, it takes some time to get the confidence, let alone the athliticism back. That is why I'm looking at this season as a learning season, but I still think Portland wins 50 games this year, so that I guess puts me in the classification of glass half full.
Oden's PER is up to 17.3, behind Brandon and Rudy, and a hair behind LaMarcus. He also has the best defensive rating (DRtg) on the team at 100. Defensive Players of the Year typically have a rating in the 90's. http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2009.html