Henry Abbott looses his mind, puts the loss entirely on an awkward Oden

I was thinking about the awkward part of Abbott's article. I don't agree with the statement and think it is way out there IMO but big centers are usually ackward. Walton who was my all time favorite player in college and the NBA was always awkward looking but he really wasn't. Even when Walton took a outside shot he would put his arms in a awkward way(can't describe it but it looked funny) but he shot a great percentage. When Oden was fouled on the fast break last night and made the basket falling down that reminded me of Walton. I don't know how many times I saw Walton getting fouled going to the basket and him making the shot but falling down from the foul and looking a little awkward. I do think Oden will get less awkward from just playing but he never will be a smooth Kobe or MJ. Big powerful centers are usually never smooth but somewhat awkward looking. All that matters if he makes the shot and doesn't travel. So, if Abbott is waiting for a very smooth Oden IMO he will have a very long wait.

 

Chill, people. If you don't think Oden looked awkward out there, then you weren't watching. And of course he'll get better - Abbott didn't and wouldn't deny that. But he has to write stuff EVERY DAY and this is stuff that's true today. I was hoping Oden would look like David Robinson (you know, move like a SF only half again as tall) but I'm realizing that was stupid. However, he does really act top-heavy. He didn't just fall down, he CRASHED down. He fell down not like a ten pin falls down but how an upside-down tenpin would fall down. I think that's a sign that his legs are still weak, which is perfectly understandable. It's also clear that he hasn't got the hang of where everything is on the court yet. He will, of course, but it's a reminder of how long it takes to get back into it - you can't just take a year off and be as good as new.

I take Abbott's point to be that Nate has to balance giving Oden PT so that later in the season he'll be completely up to speed, and not giving him PT because, quite frankly, Joel was playing better (and the team played a lot better with Joel) than Oden. I truly believe that if we hadn't had Oden last night we would have won the game. Does that mean Oden's a bad player or even that he's not a great player? No, not at all. Just that he's currently awkward and feeling his way.

Yes he got 22 and 10. But the Warriors got more while he was on the floor. If that's what we wanted for his career, we could've drafted Kevin Durant. Good numbers don't mean good game and Oden and Abbott know that.

[Edit: people might want to read Blazer's Edge's rebuttal to Abbott.]

 

I agree that it is not physical, it is mental. There are times when he is amazingly fluid, when he is unguarded or doesn't have to think. However, with his back to the basket, with his current level of discomfort, he does look a lot like Bol did. I think this will melt away by mid season and we will never have to look back again.

 

Oden did look lost last night especially on defense. Rotating, stepping back, stepping out, and just losing track of his guy or the ball. The guy is still rusty so I'm giving him a break, but it's obvious he's still adapting to playing ball for the first time in a year and his first few games in the NBA. He does look explosive when he knows what he's doing, but he's thinking too much and his legs aren't taking him where he wants to go when he wants to. He just needs more time.

 

This is a standard phenomenon among rookies. He's at the stage where he's always thinking; processing at a conscious level. That's too slow a level to play at in the NBA. As he gets more practice and experience, he'll become more instinctive at which point he'll be playing at the right speed. The read-and-react mode.

He has better talent than almost anyone he faces. They just have the crucial game speed advantage. Once Oden levels that playing field, he'll dominate.

 

Man, Oden did fine. I don't like when someone blames a player for a loss...

The guy played a very solid game.

We win and lose as a team, imo.

 

Yeah, he sure looked awkward flying in to dunk on the feed from Roy, and he looked positively oafish when hammering down Rudy's missed shot/"pass" off of the backboard.

What a ridiculous comment in an otherwise decent read.

 

"Awkward" was a poor choice of words, but I think I see his point. Oden is still at that stage when the game is moving too fast for him. Experience usually fixes that problem. Personally, I am more worried about him staying healthy enough to gain that experience!

 

Many of our turnovers were due to the refs not calling obvious slapping fouls.

We didn't respond well at first, but the fact is we got jobbed by the refs.

Better, or should I say honest refs, and we win walking away.

 

At this early stage of his career, he might move more awkwardly than any professional athlete I have ever seen.

Henry's too young to have seen Chris Dudley play?

 

pay the winner!

STOMP

 

I just wanted to add that Greg Oden is #1 in the league is rebounding rate:
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holl...linger/statistics?sort=reb&pos=c&seasonType=2

Oden is far from perfect, but he has definitely arrived. Yes, Henry Abbott has lost his mind.