Oden has been overhyped, but he could literally have been the 2nd coming and still I'd say he was overhyped. I love Ohio State basketball, more than any other sport, but I quit listening to all the talk about them around November. I was not tired of the players however. They have come in and proven to be very good (forgetting about what anyone said they were supposed to be like), and it has been a joy watching them develop and grow.
Greg Oden is one of the guys who did just that, came in and played very very well. He has tons of room to grow (esp offensively)as well, which coupled with the overflowing praise by the media, can make his performance underwhelming to some. However, I think he has been a very very good player for the Buckeyes. I don't think his 1st team nomination was a "gift" by any stretch. Just because he has room for improvement and is not "all that and a bag of chips" like the media tried to portray him out of HS does not make him unworthy of praise /awards for how he has played.
"I'm virtually free to do whatever I want, but I try to remember so is everybody else..." - Todd Snider
For those who don't believe Oden belongs on the first team, what center would you take over him?
I don't think there are any other centers with the defensive prescense that Oden brings.
I think you could argue taking Hansborough over him, but it'd depend on the kind of team I had.
OSU has enough guys to score that Oden doesn't have to score 20 a game for them to win. I don't think he'd have a problem scoring 20 if they is the way they wanted to deploy him.
GL
Everybody who says Oden hasn't lived up to the hype seems to forget that he's still not 100% and that basically he's been playing left-handed all season long. I hope he stays one more year so we can all see what he could do when he's completely healthy.
For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.
I read the article on ESPN yesterday and couldn't believe Oden was on the All-American team. Not only should he not have been on the first team, he shouldn't even have been on the second team. He'll be a great player, but he needs to get better. Right now, he's a defense only player. He's actually a liability on offense.
How they put him on there instead of Noah or Hansbrough is beyond me. And yes, Connely deserved it more than he did. Connely should have been a second teamer or something. That kid is the real deal. Oden might be the #1 pick and all, but he needs to stay another year. His offensive game will never develop once he's in the NBA. He seems to have a good head on his shoulder, but it would be awfully tough to pass up being the #1 pick. But I think he should do it.
Grape works as a soda. Sort of as a gum. I wonder why it doesn't work as a pie. Grape pie? There's no grape pie. - Larry David
Yeah, I'm an OSU hoops fan, but I thought there were other players that had better seasons, better stats, and frankly, accomplished more and meant more to their team than Oden did to the Buckeyes. Heck, I'd probably vote him #3 on his team for MVP behind Conley and Lewis.
I think Oden has progressed well in his freshman year and has persevered to overcome his injury. He is a very good player on his way to possibly being a great player.
I wouldn't go as far as saying his 1st Team A-A is a gift, but some percentage of it is based on his potential rather than what he actually accomplished.
She used to wake me up with coffee ever morning
That's probably a better way of saying it. It was a little harsh saying it was a "gift."
I also think it's wrong to base any of this voting on potential. It should be based solely on performance for this year, and if you're going to vote on stricly that, I think Hansbrough deserved the spot over Oden.
I also think Michael Conley got jobbed. He is an excellent player and ran that team to near perfection this year.
'When I'm not longer rapping, I want to open up an ice cream parlor and call myself Scoop Dogg.'
-Snoop on his retirement
Your Mom is happy.
Didn't he average like 3 blocks a game too?
Interesting NBA mock draft projections: http://www.nbadraft.net/
Of course, the season's not over and the ping-pong ball drop hasn't occurred, so...
When all is said and done more is said than done.
Board Moderators may, at their discretion and judgment, delete and/or edit any messages that violate any of the following guidelines: 1. Explicit references to alleged illegal or unlawful acts. 2. Graphic sexual descriptions. 3. Racial or ethnic slurs. 4. Use of edgy language (including masked profanity). 5. Direct personal attacks, flames, fights, trolling, baiting, name-calling, general nuisance, excessive player criticism or anything along those lines. 6. Posting spam. 7. Each person may have only one user account. It is fine to be critical here - that's what this board is for. But let's not beat a subject or a player to death, please. |