Diamond in the rough finally begins to glisten
This is some of what’s been written in this space:
Jul 1, 2009, Memo to Kevin Pritchard
Jun 23 2009, NBA Double Jeopardy, for $2000
Mar 20, 2009, What the Blazers NEED most heading towards the playoffs
Feb 17, 2009, Ranking the Best Big Men in the NBA today
Oct 8, 2008, Greg, Brandon, Rudy, Travis, Martell, LaMarcus, et al.
Sep 25, 2008, Taking on all comers
Sep 23, 2008, 2nd Coming in the Pacific Northwest
Mar 27, 2008, Educating Greg Oden
Dec 22, 2007, Blazing a New [Old] Trail in Portland
concerning the goings-on with the Trail Blazers, since the 2007 NBA Draft.
Unlike others in the on-line hoops community, nothing which has happened since those entries were first made has changed the perspective of yours truly, regarding the ability of Greg Oden.
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Trail Blazers 93, Memphis 79: Pieces come together; Greg Oden unleashed
More and more, the Trail Blazers are learning just how much Greg Oden means to their success.Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Oden, and himself.
On Tuesday, Oden was the difference for the Blazers as they jumpstarted a five-game trip with a 93-79 rout of Memphis that ran the Blazers winning streak to three.
After playing only four minutes in the first half after two quick fouls, Oden was powerful on offense and intimidating on defense, helping the Blazers break away from a 45-45 halftime tie. Oden had 14 points, six rebounds and two blocks in the second half, and keyed the Blazers’ decisive 14-1 run in the third quarter.
“I was 0-fer in the first half,” Oden said, referring to his statistical line. “I wanted to get something going. And by running and giving energy, I thought it could definitely open things up.”
The emergence of Oden is getting the Blazers close to completing the diamond that coach Nate McMillan likes to make with his hands when talking about this team. McMillan puts his forefingers and thumbs together to symbolize the connection between
Prior to this season, that diamond has never been complete because Oden has been learning the ropes. But now, the team and Oden are getting the picture.
“The biggest thing about tonight is seeing how Greg is a huge part of what we do,” Roy said. “If we can keep him on the floor it makes us a much better team. It opens everything for all of us. So in a lot of ways, it starts with him.”
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It’s only a matter of time, when you have a stud … with the skill-set, personal qualities and physical attributes of Greg Oden … at the very heart of your team, at the Center position.
Tags: Bill Russell, Bill Walton, Brando Roy, Greg Oden, Kevin Pritchard, LaMarcus Aldridge, Martel Webster, Nate McMillan, Portland Trail Blazers, Rudy Fernandez, Travis Outlaw
November 11th, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Not to nitpick, but who exactly is the “diamond in the rough” to whom the title refers? Seems to me that a former number one pick, chosen ahead of Durant, cannot be accurately described as such…
November 11th, 2009 at 11:32 pm
Scott G.,
re: the diamond
From the article linked to in the entry:
“The emergence of Oden is getting the Blazers close to completing the diamond that coach Nate McMillan likes to make with his hands when talking about this team. McMillan puts his forefingers and thumbs together to symbolize the connection between Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Oden, and himself.”
In this instance, it doesn’t refer to a single person but, rather, a four-corned jem stone that is only beginning to get polished by Misters Roy, Aldridge, Oden and McMillan.
Really, really good things in this world take some time to reach a true state of excellence and value.
November 12th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Eh… fair enough. Maybe this gem has a lot of potential left, but I’m not sure it was ever that rough. This team’s been pretty good ever since they traded for B-Roy. Regardless, my word-parsing aside, the Blazers are no doubt one of the teams to watch over the next 3-5 years.
Imagine they had dented all that by signing Hedo… Who would have ever thought that the one time Toronto wins itself a FA by virtue of being a desireable city would actually benefit another team more than the Raps. Although, FWIW, I agree with you that the reluctance to come to TO is more closely related to the quality of the franchise than of the city.
How about the win last night? I know it was the second leg of a back to back for the Bulls, but holding them to around 30pts in a half was nonetheless encouraging.
November 12th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
Scott G.,
All too frequently, pro sports teams destroy their own chances to make significant progress towards winning a league championship by, either:
A. trading, or
B. trading for,
the wrong players.
That’s exactly what Portland would have done this past summer if they acquired Mr. Turkoglu.
By holding tight with their core group of players … they are still on course to eventually ascend to the top of the WC standings, once Kobe’s influence finally begins to wane.
As far as I know, no one else anywhere on-line has dared to say it yet, but … I will go ahead and do so right now …
If Greg Oden and Co. stick to the plan, there is now a pretty fair chance that a supreme ‘talent’ like Lebron James could go his entire career without EVER winning even 1 NBA championship, considering that other Top Cats like:
Dwyane Wade
Carmelo Anthony
Dwight Howard
Deron Williams
Chris Paul
Joe Johnson
Kevin Durant
Derrick Rose
etc.
are also just coming into their athletic primes.