Greg Oden

Gregory Wayne Oden Jr.(born January 22, 1988) is an American former professionalbasketballplayer. Oden, a 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)center,playedcollege basketballatOhio State Universityforone season, during which the team was theBig Ten Conference regular season championandBig Ten Conference men's basketball tournamentchampion with Oden as thetournament MOP. Additionally, Oden and the Buckeyes were thetournament runner-upin theNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship.
On June 28, 2007, Greg Oden wasselected first overallin the2007 NBA draftby thePortland Trail Blazers. He underwentmicrofracture surgeryof the knee in September 2007, and missed the entire2007–08 NBA seasonas a result. He recovered and made hisNBAdebut on opening night 2008. In March 2012, he was waived by the Trail Blazers after missing the previous two seasons due to injuries.He signed with theMiami Heatin August 2013, more than three years after last appearing in an NBA game,and played with the team through the2014 NBA playoffs.
After playing in theChinese Basketball Associationduring its 2015–16 season, Oden stated in October 2016 that he was done with basketball and would not be returning as a player.In July 2018, he played inThe Basketball Tournament 2018.In May 2019, Oden was selected as the 7th overall pick in the 2019Big3Draft.
Oden was born inBuffalo, New York, and moved with his family toTerre Haute, Indianaat the age of nine.He attended Sarah Scott Middle School in Terre Haute, where he first played interscholastic basketball. Oden then relocated with his mother and brother and attendedLawrence North High SchoolinIndianapolis, Indianawhich he led to three consecutive Indiana Class 4A basketball championships before graduating in 2006. He was namedParade'sHigh SchoolCo-Player of the Year 2005 (along withMonta Ellis) and 2005National Boys Basketball Player of the Year. He repeated as Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year in 2006. Oden was named the2006 Indiana Mr. Basketball. He was also on theMcDonald's All-AmericanTeam and played in the All-American game, and earned first-teamParadeAll-Americanhonors for the second straight year.
On June 29, 2005, Oden and Lawrence North teammateMike Conley Jr.announced that they would be attendingOhio State Universitystarting with the 2006–07 season.
Oden had surgery on his right wrist on June 16, 2006, in Indianapolis to repair a ligament injury that occurred late in his senior high school season.As a result, he sat on the Ohio State bench during the beginning of the 2006–07 season, during which the Buckeyes were ranked as high as #1 before losing toNorth Carolina. He made his college debut on December 2, 2006, againstValparaiso, coming off the bench. He finished the game with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 blocks. In December of that year,Steve Kerrdescribed him as a "once-in-a-decade player".
The Big Ten honored Oden asPlayer of the Week, along withWisconsin'sAlando Tucker, on January 29, 2007. In the previous week, he had averaged 18 points and 11.5 rebounds.On March 6, 2007, Oden was named First Team All-Big Tenas well being voted the conference's Defensive Player of the Year.Oden fouled out for the first time in his college career againstXavierin the second round of the NCAA Tournament, and was bothered by foul trouble throughout the tournament. In theSweet Sixteen, Oden blocked a potential game-winning shot in the final seconds against Tennessee to preserve an 85–84 victory and went on to lead Ohio State past Memphis and Georgetown to advance to the2007 National Championship. In the title game, Oden scored 25 points and had 12 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in a losing effort against theFlorida Gators.
Oden, alongsideKevin Durant,Arron Afflalo,Alando TuckerandAcie Lawwere named to theAssociated PressAll-AmericanTeam. Oden and Durant were the first freshmen voted to the All-American First Team since 1990, and the third and fourth overall. Throughout his high school and college career, Oden never lost a home game.
On April 20, 2007, Oden announced that he would be entering the2007 NBA draft. On June 28, 2007, he was selected by thePortland Trail Blazerswith the #1 overall pick. To begin his Trail Blazers career, Oden chose the uniform number 52. On July 1, before his first NBA practice, Oden was signed to acontractwhich provided for two guaranteed seasons and team options for third and fourth seasons. On September 14, 2007, Oden hadmicrofracture surgeryon his ailing right knee. He missed the entire season.Oden's progress was recorded on the Trail Blazers' website and hisblog.
Although drafted in 2007, Oden was classified as a rookie for the 2008–09 season because of the knee injury.Entering the 2008–09 season, he was listed at 250 lb (110 kg), but according to Blazers' trainer Jay Jensen he weighed about 290 lb (130 kg) in July.Oden left his NBA debut with a foot injury after playing thirteen scoreless minutes against the Los Angeles Lakers.He returned on November 12, 2008, after missing two weeks, and scored his first NBA points in the first quarter against the Miami Heat. On January 19, 2009, Oden had a career-high 24 points while also grabbing 15 rebounds in a 102–85 win against theMilwaukee Bucks.On February 13, 2009, he injured his left knee in a game against theGolden State Warriors, by bumping knees with opponentCorey Maggette, and missed three weeks due to a chipped knee cap.
On November 23, 2009, Oden matched his career-high for points in a game again with 24. He set a new career-high for rebounds in a game with 20 on December 1. On December 5, 2009, Oden injured his left knee in the first quarter of a game. He was taken off the court on two connected stretchers. Later, he underwent surgery for a fractured leftpatellaand missed the rest of the season. That injury marked the second time Oden had missed major playing time due to injury.
On November 17, 2010, the team announced that Oden would have microfracture surgery on his left knee, ending his 2010–11 season.The injury marked Oden's third NBA season cut short due to a knee injury.
On December 9, 2011, the Trail Blazers announced that Oden had suffered an unspecified "setback" that left them less optimistic about his ability to play in the 2011–2012 season. Rather than signing an 8.9-million-dollarqualifying offer, Oden and the team negotiated a different offer.On February 3, 2012, Oden underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.On February 20, 2012, Oden was scheduled for a procedure on his left knee similar to the procedure he underwent 17 days earlier. However, during the operation, further damage to thearticular cartilagewas discovered, and Oden underwent his third micro-fracture surgery.
On March 15, 2012, Oden was waived by the Trail Blazers to create room on the roster for trade acquisitions.In May 2012, Oden announced his intention to sit out the 2012–13 season to focus on rehabbing his injuries.In January 2013, it was reported that several teams were interested in signing Oden for the 2013–14 season.
On August 7, 2013, Oden signed a one-year deal with theMiami Heat.He played in his first NBA game since December 5, 2009, in a preseason game against theNew Orleans Pelicanson October 23, 2013. He managed to score two points through a dunk attempt and grabbed two rebounds in four minutes of play.
On January 15, 2014, Oden made his long-awaited return to the court. In his first regular-season game since December 2009, he recorded 6 points and 2 rebounds in 8 minutes of game time in a 114–97 loss to the Washington Wizards.On February 23, 2014, Oden made his first start since December 2009 in the Heat's 93–79 win over the Chicago Bulls. The Heat made the2014 NBA Finalswhere they faced theSan Antonio Spurs. They went on to lose the series in five games.
In March 2015, Oden was reported to be working out with the Memphis Grizzlies, while he also returned to his alma mater, Ohio State, to undergo some "high-level training" withThad Matta, then Ohio State basketball team coach. Matta stated that since September 2014, Oden had been working out with the other Ohio State coaches. In June 2015, Oden had workouts with the Charlotte Hornets and the Dallas Mavericks. He told the media that he was attempting an NBA comeback with plans to return to the league for the 2016–17 season.
On August 26, 2015, Oden signed a one-year, $1.2 million contract with theJiangsu Dragonsof theChinese Basketball Association.On December 9, he recorded a season-high 22 points and 14 rebounds in a win overShandong.On February 1, 2016, he parted ways with Jiangsu.In 25 games for the club, he averaged 13.0 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.
In July 2018, Oden agreed to play as a reserve with the Scarlet & Gray, a team of Ohio State alumni who competed inThe Basketball Tournament 2018, a $2 million winner-take-all summer tournament.Oden made his debut for Scarlet & Gray on July 27,scoring 11 points in 16 minutes of playing time.Scarlet & Gray fell toTeam Fredetteon July 29, with Oden playing nine minutes while recording two points, an assist, and a block.
On April 12, 2016, Oden was hired by theOhio State Buckeyes men's basketball teamto be the student manager for the team while he went back to finish his degree at the college.In 2019, Oden graduated from Ohio State with a bachelor's degree insport industry.
On November 21, 2019, Edyoucore Sports & Entertainment announced that Oden had joined their team as an athlete advisor.
In April 2022, Oden joinedThad Matta’s staff atButler Universityas director of basketball operations.
On August 11, 2014, Oden was charged withbatteryfor punching his ex-girlfriend in the face on August 7 inLawrence, Indiana.He pleaded guilty in 2015 to battery with moderate bodily injury, and the other three charges were dropped.He was put onprobationand ordered to pay a fine and attend counseling.
Oden married his wife Sabrina in 2017. They have one child, a daughter named Londyn, born in 2016.