[joe2324Participant]

 this is more of a what if question, but still fun to think about. We know the type of career Durant has and hes been amazing since hes come into the league. Suppose Oden stayed 100% healthy and lived up to his hype as being the next Bill Russell where he averaged 20 points 20 rebounds rebounds 5 blocks a game. Would you rather have Oden or Durant? I think i’d pick Oden because you just don’t find centers that put up those numbers on both sides of the ball. 

[ScarTissue98Participant]

 Aldridge & Oden….. 6’6” scoring machine who finished in the top 10 for League MVP after only 3 years…. a 6’11” beast at PF & a 7′ + Center w/ the potential to be Dominant on Both ends of the court…. and all 3 guys are the same age basically…. My Lord, you have 3 players who ALL command a double team – How could any team stop them!?!?!…. 

[-Aria-Participant]

they also had Martell Webster, Rudy Fernandez, and Sebastian Telfair, all three of them were high potential guys, if they turned out as well the blazers would’ve been the best team ever… well close to it anyway if egos didn’t get in the way 

[-Aria-Participant]

they also had Martell Webster, Rudy Fernandez, and Sebastian Telfair, all three of them were high potential guys, if they turned out as well the blazers would’ve been the best team ever… well close to it anyway if egos didn’t get in the way 

[frogmanParticipant]

The same way the Thunder still don’t have a championship despite Durant, Westbrook, Harden and Ibaka all on the roster all when they were what? 23, 24?  It can be screwed up haha.

[frogmanParticipant]

The same way the Thunder still don’t have a championship despite Durant, Westbrook, Harden and Ibaka all on the roster all when they were what? 23, 24?  It can be screwed up haha.

[ScarTissue98Participant]

 Aldridge & Oden….. 6’6” scoring machine who finished in the top 10 for League MVP after only 3 years…. a 6’11” beast at PF & a 7′ + Center w/ the potential to be Dominant on Both ends of the court…. and all 3 guys are the same age basically…. My Lord, you have 3 players who ALL command a double team – How could any team stop them!?!?!…. 

[herceg_bukuParticipant]

 What if Blazers took Jordan lol

[herceg_bukuParticipant]

 What if Blazers took Jordan lol

[Arc12345Participant]

It really just wasn’t meant to be. Big men are SO HARD to come by. You can’t blame them for taking Oden over Durant. That’s why I can’t believe the Lakers took Russell over Okafor.

If the guard ends up being the better player, you shrug your shoulders and move on, because it’s like they say, you can’t teach 7 feet, and even more importantly, you rarely find real basketball skills with 7 feet. Oden had real skills at 7 feet. I specifically remember him making left handed free throws when he broke his hand at OSU. Can’t think of many guards, let alone bigs that could do that.

 

[Arc12345Participant]

It really just wasn’t meant to be. Big men are SO HARD to come by. You can’t blame them for taking Oden over Durant. That’s why I can’t believe the Lakers took Russell over Okafor.

If the guard ends up being the better player, you shrug your shoulders and move on, because it’s like they say, you can’t teach 7 feet, and even more importantly, you rarely find real basketball skills with 7 feet. Oden had real skills at 7 feet. I specifically remember him making left handed free throws when he broke his hand at OSU. Can’t think of many guards, let alone bigs that could do that.

 

[CameronCrazy11Participant]

Was able to see Greg Oden play in person before his injuries, and he was the REAL DEAL. The thing that doomed him was putting on so much weight between his freshman year at Ohio State and his intial rookie season. He should’ve just stayed at the 250-260 weight he played at for so long. Going up to 280 was a disaster waiting to happen. Put way too much weight on his joints and ligaments, and they obviously broke down as a result. No doubt in my mind that a healthy Greg Oden would be the best center in the NBA right now. Better than Kevin Durant? I’m honestly not sure. I’d probably still take KD over a healthy Oden though if I was an NBA GM.

[CameronCrazy11Participant]

Was able to see Greg Oden play in person before his injuries, and he was the REAL DEAL. The thing that doomed him was putting on so much weight between his freshman year at Ohio State and his intial rookie season. He should’ve just stayed at the 250-260 weight he played at for so long. Going up to 280 was a disaster waiting to happen. Put way too much weight on his joints and ligaments, and they obviously broke down as a result. No doubt in my mind that a healthy Greg Oden would be the best center in the NBA right now. Better than Kevin Durant? I’m honestly not sure. I’d probably still take KD over a healthy Oden though if I was an NBA GM.

[HeroescantdieParticipant]

That’s why they drafted Oden, and didn’t draft KD, it’s because Centers like that are once in a generation.He’s like David robinson athletecisim and Bill Russell’s defensive prowess and tenacity. I think if he stays healthy Portland will be dominating the NBA right now If not for they’re injuries, Oden will average somewhere between 18 – 20 ppg and 13-16 rpg with 2-3 bpg, with Roy averaging 20 5 5, Aldridge can be they’re stretch 4. Man, what if the curse of injuries neverhappen to portland. Oden will be the best center in the league, Maybe top 5 player in the league with his defensive skills and his improving offensive skills. 

[HeroescantdieParticipant]

That’s why they drafted Oden, and didn’t draft KD, it’s because Centers like that are once in a generation.He’s like David robinson athletecisim and Bill Russell’s defensive prowess and tenacity. I think if he stays healthy Portland will be dominating the NBA right now If not for they’re injuries, Oden will average somewhere between 18 – 20 ppg and 13-16 rpg with 2-3 bpg, with Roy averaging 20 5 5, Aldridge can be they’re stretch 4. Man, what if the curse of injuries neverhappen to portland. Oden will be the best center in the league, Maybe top 5 player in the league with his defensive skills and his improving offensive skills. 

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 The 20-20-5 prediction is a little outrageous to me. No player in the modern age of the NBA has come close to those numbers. I doubt he would have scored 20 ppg, especially on a blazers team with both Aldridge and Roy. What he could have been is a foundational defensive presence, maybe developing into the best in the league in that regard. 

Unfortunately, the injuries really took a toll on him, both mentally and physically. He battled a lot of demons off the court that really hindered him in his recovery and we never really came close to seeing him come anywhere near reaching his potential.

 

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 The 20-20-5 prediction is a little outrageous to me. No player in the modern age of the NBA has come close to those numbers. I doubt he would have scored 20 ppg, especially on a blazers team with both Aldridge and Roy. What he could have been is a foundational defensive presence, maybe developing into the best in the league in that regard. 

Unfortunately, the injuries really took a toll on him, both mentally and physically. He battled a lot of demons off the court that really hindered him in his recovery and we never really came close to seeing him come anywhere near reaching his potential.

 

[Lebron’s HairlineParticipant]

I made a post about this team a while back. I agree they had a legit dynasty in the making
http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/one-greatest-team-their-never-was

[Lebron’s HairlineParticipant]

I made a post about this team a while back. I agree they had a legit dynasty in the making
http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/one-greatest-team-their-never-was

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

I never saw all the potential everyone here is talking about, makes it seem like he was the next Shaq.  I saw a guy that said he’d be a dentist if he could be anything in the world, meaning, I don’t think he had that passion for the game.  He was sluggish and didn’t have much of an offensive game.  It’d be interesting to see how Mike Conley compares Oden to Marc Gasol and some other contemporaries.  He did win though at Ohio State so taht was impressive, but he had Conley and Conley has turned out a lot better than I thoguht.

I know I’m not alone in that I wasn’t wowed by him and I watched a lot of his Ohio State year.  Bill Simmons agreed.  

To me he would’ve been Patrick Ewing in the NBA with less offensive game, not that thats a bad thing.

 

 

 

  

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

I never saw all the potential everyone here is talking about, makes it seem like he was the next Shaq.  I saw a guy that said he’d be a dentist if he could be anything in the world, meaning, I don’t think he had that passion for the game.  He was sluggish and didn’t have much of an offensive game.  It’d be interesting to see how Mike Conley compares Oden to Marc Gasol and some other contemporaries.  He did win though at Ohio State so taht was impressive, but he had Conley and Conley has turned out a lot better than I thoguht.

I know I’m not alone in that I wasn’t wowed by him and I watched a lot of his Ohio State year.  Bill Simmons agreed.  

To me he would’ve been Patrick Ewing in the NBA with less offensive game, not that thats a bad thing.

 

 

 

  

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

I got to see a lot of Greg Oden up close during high school and AAU and you just knew you weren’t watching something normal. He was scary. It was unreal to watch. Guys that big weren’t supposed to run/gather/jump and catch the ball like that lol. He could run like a wing. Could cover so much ground. He had a legit NBA body too… A special freakish type of build. Like LeBron did coming out of high school. 

And he was a different kinda player… Not really motivated by numbers. He only cared about winning. If he had to get 10 blocks, he would. 20 rebounds? No problem. Score 30? He could do that. He was such a high IQ player and just unselfish. 

There’s no doubt in my mind that he had a chance to be the best center in the league. Definitely better than Dwight was in his prime, who was considered by many to be a superstar and top 5 player. He obviously was going to be a great defender and rebounder, but I think he would’ve been very good offensively too. Had great feet, hands and touch. Good free-throw shooter. Just needed development with his back to the basket. I even think he’d have become a good passer too due to his high IQ.

 

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

I got to see a lot of Greg Oden up close during high school and AAU and you just knew you weren’t watching something normal. He was scary. It was unreal to watch. Guys that big weren’t supposed to run/gather/jump and catch the ball like that lol. He could run like a wing. Could cover so much ground. He had a legit NBA body too… A special freakish type of build. Like LeBron did coming out of high school. 

And he was a different kinda player… Not really motivated by numbers. He only cared about winning. If he had to get 10 blocks, he would. 20 rebounds? No problem. Score 30? He could do that. He was such a high IQ player and just unselfish. 

There’s no doubt in my mind that he had a chance to be the best center in the league. Definitely better than Dwight was in his prime, who was considered by many to be a superstar and top 5 player. He obviously was going to be a great defender and rebounder, but I think he would’ve been very good offensively too. Had great feet, hands and touch. Good free-throw shooter. Just needed development with his back to the basket. I even think he’d have become a good passer too due to his high IQ.

 

[YungmUNyParticipant]

Yeah, all stats aside, I mostly remember the way he changed teams’ offensive game plans every night. You’d have teams that usually work inside-out become jump shooting teams just to avoid having to deal with Oden down in the paint. 

[YungmUNyParticipant]

Yeah, all stats aside, I mostly remember the way he changed teams’ offensive game plans every night. You’d have teams that usually work inside-out become jump shooting teams just to avoid having to deal with Oden down in the paint. 

[CU.LIONSParticipant]

I think the saddest thing about Oden was that he got hurt so early in his career. If only he had been able to play a few years first, like Yao Ming, then at least we would know how good he could have been. As of now we can only guess.

[CU.LIONSParticipant]

I think the saddest thing about Oden was that he got hurt so early in his career. If only he had been able to play a few years first, like Yao Ming, then at least we would know how good he could have been. As of now we can only guess.

[HitsterParticipant]

Gerg Oden was always compared to David Robinson of the Spurs. The Bill Russell comparison was perhaps more tongue in cheek due to Greg looking old. But Geg was considered to have the defensive potential of someone like Russell although they played in different eras.

I can recall an article circa 2006/07 when the debate about who to take over Oden and Durant was ongoing. A respected writer said that Durant’s downside was Rashard Lewis, a consistent scorer, superb 3 point shooter and borderline All Star but Oden’s downside was Mount Mutombo – basically a multiple DPOY who could dominate the boards before you even considered what he might give on offence.

If Oden had stayed sound, I could have seen him having a good as or if not better career than Dwight Howard has done.

[HitsterParticipant]

Gerg Oden was always compared to David Robinson of the Spurs. The Bill Russell comparison was perhaps more tongue in cheek due to Greg looking old. But Geg was considered to have the defensive potential of someone like Russell although they played in different eras.

I can recall an article circa 2006/07 when the debate about who to take over Oden and Durant was ongoing. A respected writer said that Durant’s downside was Rashard Lewis, a consistent scorer, superb 3 point shooter and borderline All Star but Oden’s downside was Mount Mutombo – basically a multiple DPOY who could dominate the boards before you even considered what he might give on offence.

If Oden had stayed sound, I could have seen him having a good as or if not better career than Dwight Howard has done.

[MatosParticipant]

 KD, Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge combination is scarier. At that point you just need to find a defensive minded big and then thats the real dynasty. 

[MatosParticipant]

 KD, Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge combination is scarier. At that point you just need to find a defensive minded big and then thats the real dynasty. 

[Author]

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