It was supposed to be the new Olajuwon, he was chosen by Portland with the n. 1 ahead of Durant in 2008 but his knees gave him away. Disappointment pushed him towards alcohol and that’s where the troubles began…
“With first pick in 2008 draft, Portland Trailblazers pick Greg Oden, center, Ohio State.” Hand! Why fall back on it? Alright, we’ll grant him generic extenuating circumstances. After all, make me guess and I’ll make you rich. Yes, because the next name to be called, by the Seattle Supersonics, was that of Kevin Durant. Errare humanum est, persevere autem diabolicum, the ancient Romans said. Here, rather than the hand of the devil, is that of the Blazers management, already guilty 24 years earlier of having preferred Sam Bowie to Michael Jordan. Two almost parallel stories, even if Oden won by detachment once the sums were drawn. After all, the good Bowie closed his career with over 500 games played, against Greg’s 105. And above all he never punched his girlfriend in the face