We've seen a lot of video over the last year of the 2007 NBA Draft No. 1 pick, but none of it has been of him playing hoops. From hanging out at his mom's house, to training in a pool, to his ESPN Mag advertisement, and sharing with his that he named his dog Charles Barkley McLovin, we've seen it all.
Finally, some actuall footage of Greg Oden playing real actual basketball, well practicing at least. The Portland Trail Blazers allowed the local media into their facility to tape the first 20 minutes of a workout with Channing Frye and rookie Steven Hill (that dude who always wore a headband) from Arkansas.
The good news is that he dominated Frye and Hill. The bad news is that it was only Frye and Hill. That's not exactly the second coming frontcourt of Tim Duncan and David Robinson.
Sean Meagher of the Oregonian is one of the many Portland writers gushing over the workout, but he was objective enough to realize not all is gravy.
One word: huge. As in Greg Oden is huge. And the good kind of huge too. He makes Channing Frye (6'11" in his own right) look like a small forward. And the knee? Looked great from where I was standing...
... One of the first things I noticed about the practice was how often Oden had his hands on his knees. Now, we only witnessed the final 20 minutes of the show and that's after an hour before we were allowed in. As you can imagine, the big man was a little gassed. He's also not in NBA shape yet, admittedly so. But the force and power in which he was jumping and attempting to tear the rim from the backboard had most all in attendance in awe. And as Kevin Pritchard stated afterward, there's things he can do that most human beings can't. And the strength he's able to display by moving people around on the court is almost unfair...
... Oden is such an athlete he makes most of the things he does look semi-effortless. His dunks, while rim rattling and forceful, come so easy and natural to him it almost looks like he's bored. But when he misses a shot, and he missed a handful of five to 10 footers today, he gets upset with himself. And when he does throw down with that emotion, he means it.
... One of the first things I noticed about the practice was how often Oden had his hands on his knees. Now, we only witnessed the final 20 minutes of the show and that's after an hour before we were allowed in. As you can imagine, the big man was a little gassed. He's also not in NBA shape yet, admittedly so. But the force and power in which he was jumping and attempting to tear the rim from the backboard had most all in attendance in awe. And as Kevin Pritchard stated afterward, there's things he can do that most human beings can't. And the strength he's able to display by moving people around on the court is almost unfair...
... Oden is such an athlete he makes most of the things he does look semi-effortless. His dunks, while rim rattling and forceful, come so easy and natural to him it almost looks like he's bored. But when he misses a shot, and he missed a handful of five to 10 footers today, he gets upset with himself. And when he does throw down with that emotion, he means it.
There's some more breakdown, and quite a thorough breakdown at that considering it was very minimal video, but you can tell the Portland is filling up with anxiousness for the start of the season.
Admittedly, Oden tops the list of reasons I'm looking forward to the NBA returning. It's good to see him back on the court.
Greg Oden works out for a crowd [Oregonian]
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