I never get pictures of Rudy :(

Maybe he needs a little snuggle time with McLovin’

Thanks Ben!

A journalist who actually USES the semi-colon instead of the comma when appropriate, avoiding a comma splice!

Hallelujah!

Whole lot of commotion over at the practice facility today; everyone and his grandmother was there today.

I’ve been a Joel P. advocate for three years, and I still think he needs to start. However, Greg Oden should never think that this is a knock on him. I think Greg Oden is an incredible athlete and a fine human being who has a great sense of humor, compassion, a mature world view, and the capacity to be an NBA Hall of Fame member. It’s just too danged early for him to start right now.

I think Nate using Greg in stretches, building up his legs and wind, and allowing him to get his first personal view of the armpits of the NBA’s elite, is the way to properly school him. Then, ladies and gents, look out, because Oden is going to rock the league.

This year, however, Joel P. is the guy to start with, a person Greg can learn from, compete against in practice, and eventually surpass in muntes. No freakin rush is necessary. Greg, have a Happy Thanksgiving, and make sure McLovin gets some turkey.

eek i just updated the post and i think i lost some comments by doing that… sorry if yours was deleted? not sure what happened.

Why does it have to be “mental” or “game speed?” If I thought long enough, I could come up with other reasons why Oden in practice doesn’t equate to Oden in an NBA game.

I think people are trying to read too much into every little thing Greg Oden does.

How much of Oden’s slow development do you think can be due to the fat that Luc has not been with the team and on a corollary, is there any timetable on when he may come back and teach Greg how to kill everyone on the court?

I hate use a football analogy but I think Greg’s year will resemble Patriot QB Matt Cassel’s first year as a starter. Cassel was put over the coals by everyone in the media in the beginning, including that horse faced jerk named Sterling Sharpe, but what did you expect for a guy who spent sitting on the bench behind Tom Brady? All the so called experts totally wrote the guy off.

Now that Cassel’s gotten used to the speed in the pros he thrown for back to back 400+ games. Greg’s a work in process, he’s only going to get better with more pt. Enjoy the ride, it’s the journey not the destination you should be paying attention to.

He needs a hug and some time and Ben may not be comfortable or God-ish to provide either so lets just let Oden be for now.

Thanks for the info Big B you are a G.
Sophia

Why aren’t they going to Greg?

or is this being blown out of proportion? I think that’s my next question.

There either isn’t a problem with Greg’s attitude and it’s blown out, or the Blazers aren’t paying attention to it. Sounds like there’s no issue, but I’d have like to have heard that confirmed.

I know that it is hard to remember. but G.O. is a ROOKIE who has just a handful of games under his belt. DEEP BREATH EVERYONE! I can’t remember Clyde putting up 25p 8r 6a in his first month of his career, but I think that everyone can agree that he didn’t turn out to be too bad. Yes, Greg is struggling, and yes we are all looonng past due for something besides hope for the future to celebrate, but we will see it THIS SEASON.

The thing I am most concerned is that Greg has put so much burden on his shoulders that he is not having fun. That has to change. So I think that everyone (GO included) should lighten up, and enjoy the first few miles of what is going to be a long, fulfilling, and exciting trip.

Josh McRoberts

Stat Quo

On one hand, I agree with Ben that Greg is exhibiting some signs that he is in a less than optimal psychological state. I think that his outlook could be improved with some sort of professional help.

On the other hand, I agree that the attention being paid to his emotional state could actual make the problem worse. I also feel that some of the criticism of his attitude is an overreaction, pure and simple… and that many interpretations of his psychological state are wildly off.

I think there are very few people that would not benefit from professional psychological help, though he might be embarrassed to let it be known that he’s getting it.

I think it’s obvious that a scouting report has gotten around to the rest of the league that says this: “Don’t try to block Oden or push him out of the block — instead, steal the ball out of his hands before he starts shooting.” That’s what’s been happening multiple times per game — it’s probably one of the top priorities for him to work on.

The Blazers drafted Greg Oden based on his enormous potential and the way his strengths would dovetail with this team’s needs. No one knowledgeable expected that 19-year-old to come into the league and start dominating overnight.

Now, as a 20-year-old coming off microfracture knee surgery and a lost season, GO could be expected to struggle big-time. That’s especially true considering that the other starters have hardly played with him—even in practice.

PATIENCE! The payoff is going to be as huge as GO’s body.

Here’s mine:

Rudy “Ohhh Heyyy, I want some of that, no?”

The guy in front of Greg in the background: “dude, i got into the practice facility and gonna steal me this ball!”

The guy in the back of Greg in the middle of the court: “Is this the YMCA? Blazer’s practice here?”

was Rudy sporting an amazing mustache!!!!
Now I’m disappointed that it wasn’t him as I was hoping to see it in person tomorrow:)

So by watching Oden doing a light workout with coach Dean you come to the conclusion that Oden is a skilled and talented player who’s inconsistency is due to only one of two things? Sorry but IMO it’s not that simple. With Oden, it could be youth, age, recovery, inexperience, confidence, exposure…pick em, match em, sort em, choose a little from column A and Column B. Why do we have to go over this time and time again? Greg’s a 20 year old rookie who hasn’t played for over a year, coming off of micro. Why is anyone suprised. Could we just step back and let the kid develop?