Dude, don't you remember the reports out of training camp last year? Oden was dominating everyone - he was leaping tall buildings in a single bound. Then he went on to lay an egg. Just recognize who is "reporting" this information... all Blazers paid employees.
I really do agree with this. The fact that Brian Grant is with Oden now is very encouraging though. Having had one of the earliest MF surgeries myself back in 1999, I can attest that Oden was a shell of his former self due to the surgery. You must remember that for six months after the surgery you can not basically do squat. You can not put any weight on the knee. Not because you will damage the knee per se, but because you could break up the new cartilege that the surgery is meant to produce. It is fragile in the growing process. My left knee is where I had the MF surgery. The muscles on that leg are noticably smaller than vs. my right leg. All do to inactivity. Now Oden went through a lot of pool time to keep the muscles bulked up, but he had to lose some. Now he is able to do deep squats and other things geared at getting that muscle back, which leads to a stronger leg, faster side to side and jumping. He really should be much better, physically. Which will also hopefully lead to a better mental state. We all know Oden went through a mental funk over all of this. When you see it all coming back it makes you feel better and work harder. Will this all translate to Oden dominating the NBA as he did in college, possible. That will really fall into what is between his ears. He is getting the coaching, the rehab, even mental coaching. But he has to put it together himself. The game will click and become easier if he keeps working, getting repetition and game experience. But I would be skeptical of anything that comes from the Blazers "reporters." We as fans will not know how much he has progressed until he plays with the select team, which will be televised. And then ultimately in the pre-season.
Hmm......not playing basketball for an entire year might have had an affect on that. Combine the losss of muscle memory with the Greg's weight being all over the map and you have a recipe for a young player that looks out of place. The scary thing is that his PER was was still sky high and should only improve after this summer of workouts. I think most of us were way to optimistic about Greg getting back into complete basketball shape. Thankfully they are working on the deficiencies that plagued him last year.
Good Post. Great insight on the injury. But really you made our point. Sure you can be skeptical. I am about everything. But its not like the article is saying he is awesome. Just that he is working out with Brian and Bayno, working on his shot, footwork, balance, lateral movement, and that he has gotten quicker. Those bastards! How can they possibly think we would buy that crap again. LOL!
I know Brian has early onset Parkinson's but if he's healthy enough to be a workout partner for GO, I'd love to see him added to the staff as a special assistant to help all of our bigs, he'd probably love Pendergraph.
