I would say it is unlikely that Greg Oden is ever going to shed his reputation as one of the worst draft picks of all time. He has already missed too much of his career and who knows if he will ever even see the floor again.
Plus the guy that was picked behind him is some dude named Kevin Durant.
While Oden is currently rehabbing from his ceremonial 100th surgery (maybe a slight exaggeration there), he is currently getting a degree in sports and leisure from Ohio State and working toward becoming a gym teacher.
Oden does not seem to be in any hurry to get back on the court right now, but he is open to the possibility.
"I would love to play [in 2012-13], but I’m not going to rush anything,” Oden said. “What I told [agent Mike Conley] was ‘Look, I want to get back with a team. I want to play. If there’s a chance that later on in the year, if I feel good or if I’m healthy enough to play, I would love to play this year.’ That’s the conversation we had."
A couple of teams have reportedly expressed interest in Oden, namely the San Antonio Spurs, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers.
The Magic now need a big man badly with Dwight Howard taking off for L.A. and the Spurs have always needed some help down low. The Pacers just signed Roy Hibbert to a max contract, but I guess they could always use some backup.
I think this one is obvious. Greg Oden has played 82 games, the equivalent of one full season, in the five years since he was drafted. He is made of glass and nobody should be paying him millions of dollars to wear a suit on their bench. I know he has the talent of a top overall draft pick, but it does nothing if he cannot stay healthy. There is always the outside chance that he returns to form someday and several NBA GMs are kicking themselves for not signing him when they could, but I think that is a risk you take considering what Oden has been doing for the last half a decade.
