http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/b...blazers_greg_oden_misses_easy_ones_but_h.html No, he's not exactly taking the league by storm. "But you definitely notice him when he's out there," said Wilson Chandler after the Knicks wilted down the stretch and saw too much of Brandon Roy in a 104-97 defeat. "You can tell he's there. He's a big defensive presence." Then Chandler paused to think about how good Oden can be. "A pretty good player," he said. Although his chiseled body would never allow him to be confused with flabby Eddy Curry, Here in New York, we're already waiting for 2010 to see if the Knicks can land LeBron James and become instant championship contenders. It's a long time off and it also comes with no guarantees. The guy could stay put, right? But by then, Portland could very well be the team to beat in the Western Conference, if not the entire NBA. The Blazers' major pieces to a championship contender could already be in place, in Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge and Oden. That's the way you'd rank them now, but eventually, Oden should surpass Aldridge. He might not overtake Roy, who simply does everything right and makes the big plays in crunch time. Whatever their eventual order of importance, it just means that Portland is on the right road. "If they keep this team together, they're going to be a factor in the West, every year from here on out," said Buck Williams, the old rebounding machine and defensive ace for the Nets, Blazers and Knicks. This was around 6 o'clock Tuesday night, and the player who used to wear No. 52 for the Blazers was sitting about 15 rows up, watching the player who now wears No. 52, Oden, go through a pregame workout. During his 17 years of NBA service, Williams used to rebound with the best of them and was a fixture on the All-Defensive teams. Once he landed in Portland after starting out with the Nets, the Blazers found their missing piece. Well, almost. They went to two Finals in a three-year stretch. Lost to Isiah Thomas once. Lost to Michael Jordan the other time. "Greg hasn't even scratched the surface, yet, because he missed all of last year," Williams said. "But I coached against him two or three summers ago with my AAU team. I saw what he could do, firsthand. Right now, he's a little unsure of himself. But once he adjusts to the speed and size and demands of the game, he'll be a much better ballplayer. And he could end up being a dominating, dominating ballplayer." That's exactly what 29 other teams fear. So Oden didn't find the rims in the Garden very friendly Tuesday night. That's not lasting forever.
Actually, it's from the New York media, but yes, it's a pretty fair article. I was at the game last night, and Oden was underwhelming, to say the least. I sure hope he gets his confidence back by the time the playoffs roll around!
Yes it is. BNM P.S. crandc, you really need to change your avatar. It is very un-PC of you to poke fun at the physically deformed. I expect better from you. That poor young fellow in your avatar has a schlong that's shaped like a casaba melon. I'm sure posting a picture of his misshapen private parts in a public forum has, no doubt, been the source of much shame and embarrassment for the young lad.
Speaking of Buck, what about trying to get him in to coach Greg? Buck was never the best talent but damn he was very smart BB player and no one out worked him. Seems like the perfect fit presuming Buck can actually coach, lol.
Based on Oden's games so far, I'm not even slightly worried about his defense and rebounding. Both have been utterly up to the loftiest expectations, really, and those were Buck Williams' stocks in trade. The thing he's looked bad on, so far, is post offense. I'd rather bring in someone who really understood how to play offense in the post. Someone like Kevin McHale, for example. Shaquille O'Neal relied so much on pure power, David Robinson didn't have a consistently dominating back-to-the-basket game and Hakeem Olajuwon had an extremely unique game. McHale had perhaps the purest back-to-the-basket game, dependent entirely on skill, really. I think he could be a great teacher for Oden, if he were interested.
