If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

[SMosley21]

Assuming he's healthy this coming season, could you guys imagine the twin towers of Hibbert and Oden? Oden is athletic enough to play the 4 on the defensive end, then on offense we could use Roy's sweet 15-17 foot jumpers while Oden could bang down low and abuse opposing big men. We could surely get Oden a lot cheaper than we could get Horford because of Oden's injury history and lack of production thus far in his career, and from a business standpoint it would put asses in seats (A LOT of them) at Conseco.

If you don't like this idea, don't get your panties in a twist. It's Sunday morning and I barely slept last night, so I'm just kicking around ideas right now.

Here's a nicely written article about Oden's contract situation in Portland that pretty much sums things up from their end.

http://howtowatchsports.com/2010/01/the-coming-contract-crisis-of-greg-oden/

I say, if he hits the market we should make him a priority.

[MillerTime]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

assuming hes healthy this season....

Portland isnt going to let him go. Their fans would be soooo pissed if they let go of the guy that they drafted before KD

[SMosley21]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

assuming hes healthy this season....

Portland isnt going to let him go. Their fans would be soooo pissed if they let go of the guy that they drafted before KD

Their fans are already pissed that they drafted him over KD anyway. They're going to have a tough decision to make after this season though. If he comes back this season and is able to play at least 65-70 game and puts up decent numbers (13 and 9 with a couple blocks per), what do they do contract wise? They won't max him out, but they'll have to give him more than what he has shown he's worth so far. They'll basically be paying him for potential (like they do in the NFL) and will have to decide if they're willing to tie up long term money for a guy who has had serious injury problems. He's scheduled to make $6.7 million this season and then Portland will have to decide if they want to make the qualifying offer next summer of $8.8 million. I'm not saying that it's LIKELY that we sign Oden, but that if Portland doesn't feel like he's worth long term money, then we could be in a perfect spot to bring him home and reap the benefits of their labor the past few seasons.

[Kegboy]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

What MT said.

However, with their new front office, they may be more likely to cut bait on Oden than Pritchard. Hell, they had such a fun time badmouthing Pritch I wouldn't be surprised if they came out and said everyone in Oregon wanted Durant except him and Penn.

[pacers74]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

If and only if he proves he is healthy and can play a whole season, we won't be the only team trying to sign him. He is too much of a risk to sign to a long term deal. It could bite you in the arse way to easy. I know they are not they same player, but it would be like signing Bender to a long term deal and not going after someone else who would be a better fit (Brad Miller).

[Kegboy]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

Their fans are already pissed that they drafted him over KD anyway. They're going to have a tough decision to make after this season though. If he comes back this season and is able to play at least 65-70 game and puts up decent numbers (13 and 9 with a couple blocks per), what do they do contract wise? They won't max him out, but they'll have to give him more than what he has shown he's worth so far. They'll basically be paying him for potential (like they do in the NFL) and will have to decide if they're willing to tie up long term money for a guy who has had serious injury problems. He's scheduled to make $6.7 million this season and then Portland will have to decide if they want to make the qualifying offer next summer of $8.8 million. I'm not saying that it's LIKELY that we sign Oden, but that if Portland doesn't feel like he's worth long term money, then we could be in a perfect spot to bring him home and reap the benefits of their labor the past few seasons.

I would say it's likely the new CBA will help them immensely with their concerns.

[pacers74]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

I would say it's likely the new CBA will help them immensely with their concerns.

Are you saying unguaranteed contracts like the NFL where they can cut you each year? It would make the signing bonuses the biggest part of the contract.

[Brad8888]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

The second most successful NBA player to come from Lawrence North in recent years?

It might be awesome to see him here. I can see it now...sometimes in warmups, sometimes in an actual game uniform, but getting constant interviews in the local media, but mostly truly rockin' his three piece suits from behind the bench like somebody who is auditioning to be a cover model for GQ. Unfortunately for Oden, though, GQ generally seems to feature younger looking guys.

Unlike our team offensive philosophy overall, I'll pass.

[rexnom]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

[insert joke about Oden looking old]

[Day-V]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

Greg Oden makes Bob Sanders look like Wolverine.

[Bball]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

He's on the verge of changing his name to Greg Broken.

[Shade]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

I'd love to give Oden a shot...at the right price, of course.

His problem has been primarily health, not skill.

[McKeyFan]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

Is Oden the right player to have next to Roy? I doubt he is quick enough to guard the pick and roll effectively.

That's what we need: a defending, shot blocking, defend the pick and rolling PF/C who can hit a shot from 15 feet consistently.

Tyler: not a shot blocker
McBob: Not a shooter
Rolle: Not a minute of experience yet
Foster: Fading

While having Odom is a cool idea, it's a bad idea with Roy on the roster.

[Eleazar]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

It would be nice to have Oden as a back-up to Hibbert, but I don't see him and Hibbert doing too well on the court at the same time.

[laydo]

Re: If we don't target Horford, what about... Greg Oden??

IMO, chance to land Horford maybe higher than Oden.