But I think that if I were heralded by some twits (I’m one of the twits) as the Bringer of Justice and Protector of the Paint, and I believed even 1/4 the hype, I’d be a little down on myself too….

I give him alot of slack becuase I remember Zachs first year back after micro.

But I also take nibbles out of him for his apparent lack of enthusiasim. cuz if I was 7 feet tall, I’d kill to run with this team. (but you don’t want me to, I suck)

So I’m kinda on the fence despite falling on the “gosh darn it greg” side more often than not.

A few things I’m afraid of ….

1. greg does crack under the pressure and never reaches his potential ceiling.
2. greg is OK during his tenure in portland, but makes a rash decision to test the water elsewhere due to his bad…“hype/media” exposure/experience.
3. He becomes full blown reclusive (not sure if that’s the right word) and goes all wallace on us here soon.

best case…..he learns to deal with it, and starts to enjoy himself and snaps out of it soon.

WE’LL STILL LOVE HIM FOR HIM no matter what….. but it’s his own expectations that I think that are driving him a little stir crazy….

1st year back from micro and everyone kinda putters down the stip right?
(me being a fan though, I forget that alot.)

There’s a double-standard there in my eyes.

On the one hand media folks will claim it’s not only their right but their duty to report anything and everything you say or do. Not what you mean or intend, not with your input on what’s important or crucial or weighs most, not even with consideration of your interpretation of events or context necessarily…when you talk to them you give that power of disclosure and interpretation to them completely. They will defend the propriety and necessity of that until the day they die.

On the other hand when you won’t talk to them it’s painted like you’re abnormal, as if you’re refusing to talk to some regular, friendly guys from your block. Regular, friendly guys from your block don’t usually report everything interesting or odd you say to the whole universe and you usually have recourse against them if they do.

I haven’t listened to the audio clip but if the definition of “downer” is based solely on not speaking to the media I’d take it with a grain of salt. I’ve known people who won’t talk to me in my job but they’re fine with their friends and family…not down at all. They’re not avoiding me, but my profession. I love Quick and Freeman, but making assumptions about Greg’s overall personality from what he’s doing professionally with them is probably a mistake.

I believe speaking or not speaking to the media should basically be an athlete’s choice. If the disadvantages outweigh the advantages for him it’s fine in my mind not to. I understand that there are some mandatory appearances and I’m cool with those, but I also understand when we get nothing but canned responses during them.

—Dave

… but Quick better watch that he doesn’t get a big head. Quick is not supposed to be the story. Quick is supposed to tell the story.
If Greg is down, Quick’s job is to find out why and report on it.
He can do that by talking to Greg or not talking to Greg. He must, however, realize Greg’s job is not to be in a good mood, but to play basketball.

that Greg is trying to forget the hype and focusing on b-ball.
I really don’t give a damn if he gives interviews or not.
It’s called free speech and not mandatory speech. He’ll speak when he wants to do so.
Having said that, I’m a little bit worried about Oden. Not basketball wise.
There is some truth in what Quick says, he does not seem to be enjoying himself.

He gets asked more personal questions than team questions. The guy had to endure countless interviews about his health for a entire year and now has to be accountable for the absurd media hype(Quick included) he did not ask for. Frankly, I’m glad he’s not talking to the media. Maybe he’s focusing on the team and doesn’t want to bring more attention to himself. Oden is a good kid. I’m sure he feels some of that pressure, but I have no doubts he is working hard to improve and I don’t need the media to speculate on Greg’s “mood”.

Over the past Year and a Half, has he ever had one day where he’s alone?

I mean, rehab, season….did he take a vacation inbetween there or has he been all go since getting drafted, cuz, really I don’t remember him getting a break…

right after the draft kp swooped him up and drug him here to portland, then down to vegas, then to micro, then ….rest, rest, (this time don’t count cuz it couldn’t have been fun), then. rehab rehab, travel with the team, rehab, rehab,…then debut, and injury, rehab…..then now. so was there like a break in there for greg?

i’ve written this multiple times in game recaps. greg is not available after games. he is the only player consistently not available. it’s not just quick.

I’m shocked. The dude’s gone emo. No biggie. He’ll grow out of it.

that Greg doesn’t seem to be enjoying himself.

If i were greg i wouldnt talk to the media also. I would feel you you made a star and now you want to tear me down. Look the guy is playing good for just coming back from a major surgery. I get sick of the media and some fans analyzing everything the guy does like were all dr. phil

Does anybody worry (I know it is early in his “rookie” season) that if even if our team is a playoff team and Greg has good to great success, that he still may not like playing in a small market. Maybe a larger market, with less pressure, would be more appealing to the big man. Here on BE, we have been talking non stop for months about each player on this team. At least in a larger market there are other sports teams to take the burden off being in a “fish bowl.” I am a little afraid that the allure of championships, and Paul Allens money, it still won’t be enough to keep an unhappy, top 3 center, in Portland.

i wouldnt think there is less pressure in new york or L A probaly more

Watch this link for Coach Mac and Oden (2:07 mark)….. Unbelievable!!!

He’s actually talking to the media, we can all rest now =)

just because he wont speak to the media doesnt mean that he is folding under the pressure

There is a really surprising (for me) talk about how many players in the NBA are depressed.
I’m gonna quote the paragraph:
"The other day I talked to a guy who is close to several NBA players. I asked him to estimate the percentage of NBA players who are depressed. I guessed 60. He said more like 95. It’s probably a topic for another post, on another day, when I understand that better. But it occurs to me that one who is not is Martell Webster. "

That can’t be serious. 60% is way higher than I could ever conceive. 95% is obviously wrong.

I’m glad he ditches out. Roy can put the team on his back and win the game and they want to talk to Oden about his 20 minutes in the game. He’s not the story most nights but the media wants to make him the story. Przybilla is outplaying Oden, but the media wants to talk to Oden after the game. This situation is pretty silly.

It appears that Greg is stuck in a media mess. I hope that he avoids these sites for the moment. There isn’t much comfort in reading this stuff. I do know that 20 year olds can get easily overwhelmed and so it makes sense that he would avoid the media but the reasoning is personal. We cannot get in his head, so why try? He’ll figure it out. Give him some space. Go Blazers!!

He was perfectly open—an interviewer’s delight—until the media started piling on him. And Quick was a prime offender with that “underwhelming” story. I think that we as Blazer fans need to pressure the media to get off this kid’s back. Otherwise, he may want to get out of Portland the day his rookie contract expires.

should get a Yardbarker account and give the man some props for being a great guy. We need to support him as fans to make sure he realizes that the media does not equal the fan base. I know he reads his Yardbarker comments because he responded to me and other folks on there.

I think he has found a balance between the newspaper and the players. He has cultivated a good relationship with the players. The players have allowed him enough rope so that he has come up with some fascinating and revealing stories about them.

- Elgin