Greg Oden Takes a Game One Do-Over: Hall of Fame Watch?

Well, it’s safe to say, if the ballots were cast tomorrow, he’d be a shoo-in.

I’m sure I wasn’t the only one to see that performance tonight. Greg got his first field goal, his first points on the board, ever. And what points they were. He reached up, and put the ball in the hoop.

And then he did it again.

And again.

And again.

All from very, very different angles. It was the most impressive thing I’ve ever seen. But no, those times I saw him doing it again were just replays. There were at least 342, by my count.

But it was clear from how the announcers talked about it, it was certainly Hall O’ Fame material. For those two seconds, he looked calm, dominant, mature, in control. Those were the most beautiful seconds I’ve ever seen. I still can’t stop crying.

But, that was really it for the game. Other times he looked clumsy, shuffling around, overpowered by lesser players in the paint, letting the ball slip away. There was one beautiful block, another flash of brilliance—but out of the few minutes we saw tonight, those were all I can take away.

Those were Hall of Fame moments. Three points, Oden. Congrats.

Meanwhile, Beasley danced around gracefully.

Wasn’t Rose supposed to be the work in progress? He’s looking spectacular. What is this Oden hype all about? I get it, it was the first game—but jeez, this wasn’t anything beautiful from my vantage point.

But the Trail Blazers still pulled it off, even with the amazing contributions of one Greg Oden.

Did anyone turn on CNN in the past few days? Every angle, every glorious angle, of Obama shaking Bush’s hand. He’s already, clearly, the greatest president in history.

But I guess this is what the media is for.

In all seriousness—I really do like Greg Oden. He’s a really wonderful person, wonderful mentality. Smart, positive, charismatic.

And if you read this, Greg? Don’t listen to me. Don’t listen to anybody. You have it in you to be great, but don’t let others define that greatness. You have to find it on your own. You will find it on your own.

But you can’t let us obsessing over your every move get in your head. You just have to play the game the way you play it. Everything else will follow that.

You know that one game that makes you great? It's never the first. Or the do-over first. It's the one where you are so lost in yourself and the game, you don’t even realize it until the media thrusts the legend upon you the next day.

I just hope neither of these guys, whether destined for Hall O’ Fame or Mt. Rushmore, suffer from relentless over-hyping and ridiculous expectations.

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