NBA / Feb 21, 2012 / 3:00 pm

Greg Oden’s Top 5 Basketball Highlights

2. The One-Handed Godzilla
Oden’s magnum opus as a basketball player was undoubtedly his performance in the 2007 NCAA Championship Game. Ohio State lost to Florida and their all-NBA frontcourt (Noah, Horford and Brewer), but Oden nearly won the game by himself. The freshman had 25 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots. So let’s get this straight: Going against a team about to win its second consecutive NCAA championship with a frontline sporting three upperclassmen (all of whom would go on to do time in the NBA… as starters, All-Stars, defensive stars) and playing with basically one hand because of a wrist injury, Oden was BY FAR the best player on the court.

This felt like a coming out party. All season, we saw glimpses of what the freshman could be. But when you’re reduced to shooting free throws with your off hand, it’s hard to accurately access. Despite that injury (there’s that word again), Oden averaged 15.7 points, 9.6 rebounds and 3.3 blocks on 62 percent shooting for the Buckeyes. Before starting their own debate atop that summer’s draft board, Oden and Kevin Durant became the first freshmen in nearly 20 years to be named to the Associated Press All-American Team.

Pages : 1 2 3 4 5 6
Related Posts with Thumbnails
  • Isaac

    I can’t believe you didn’t add his block on Bynum.

  • http://mailkdw.com LALA

    Greg Oden is a BUST!

  • sh!tfaced

    Man, its crazy but I’m still hoping for GO though – just make it somewhere at least closer to a Bill Walton type career rather than a Sam Bowie.

    And for bball to lose a player like Oden in this day and age where pure centers are nowhere to be found… Daugherty/Walton/Bowie didn’t feel like this big a waste because there were so many great centers then…

  • sh!tfaced

    for a while there, i really thought the pop-up reverse kneecap was number one… lol

  • Knicksfan84

    Stick a fork in him. Oden is done. Damn I mean even Eddy Curry had a career. SMH. Oden will forever live on in NBA 2k

  • http://www.nbafullcourtpressure.com Matt

    Retirement will be next for Oden, just like Brandon Roy.

  • Big Island

    I don’t mind when dudes bust, even if I like them in college. But I don’t count injured guys as a bust. I just feel bad for him.

  • north

    Oden has more injuries and surgeries than point and rebounds. Bowie had a better career.

  • Clk360

    Living in PDX it’s hard to feel bad for Greg when you are constantly hearing stories of him popping up at bars or strip clubs. I have first hand witnessed this twice. It appears to most Blazer fans he hasn’t taken his rehab seriously. Blazers need to fire their entire medical staff because apparently they don’t know how to read x-rays. Oh, and Sam Bowie should send Greg Oden a fruit basket because G.O. is officially the biggest bust in franchise history.

  • yoda

    too bad this happened to him. but like i’ve said before, this is difference between injury prone player and player who gets injured (andrew bynum). after all, odom hurt his knee getting up from the couch, bynum got his knees smashed by teammates, odom and kobe.
    at least oden made some money from his rookies contract. i hope he wasn’t the fool to go on shopping spree from the day one and he still has some money left.

  • http://www.livingcheapla.com hakasan

    nba teams just have to take a page from phoenix’s rehab staff… that team probably has some alien technology to keep nash fresh, gave amare new knees, and somehow resurreted grant hill… tmac should pay phoenix to go play there…

    @clk, wow… not being from the area, i’ve never heard those stories, but people need to take their jobs and their health seriously… proper rehab is so key to getting back from surgeries…

  • sh!tfaced

    Greg Oden, if you read this, do whatever it takes and get traded to Phoenix…

-->