FanNation - The Republic of Sport

   The Trail Blazers lost a close game last night, on the road against a contender in New Orleans. I'm not going to go into the details of this game because I believe something more significant happened for the Blazers last night. Something positive.

   In the midst of last night's defeat, Greg Oden played the most minutes he has yet this season- and he played them well. In 24 minutes of court time, Oden scored 11 points (3-3 on field goals and 5-6 on free throws), grabbed 11 rebounds, and blocked 4 shots. He had zero turnovers. He did rack up 4 fouls, but as a rookie big man playing aggressive defense, you can forgive him.

   Oden played the entire 24 minutes without injury or exhibiting any lingering pain from previous injuries. I hate to make a big deal of this, but it is still significant considering his recent history.

   True, it was only Oden's third game of the season, but it does provide reason for optimism. During his first 2 games, Oden looked nervous and remarkably restrained- like he wasn't comfortable just letting loose. Last night in New Orleans though, he played aggressively and displayed a little more of what the Blazers say he has been exhibitting during practices. It would appear he is beginning to get a feel for the NBA game. His stat line last night would be a good one for most of the NBA's centers on most nights, and to do so in just 24 minutes is pretty impressive too.

   I'm not saying that we should all restart the hype machine surrounding Oden and the Blazers. One game is one game. As last night exhibitted, this team still needs time to learn how to operate with Oden in the mix. And I'm sure Oden would tell you himself that he has not "figured it all out" after just 3 games. One solid game does not equal the arrival of a superstar. Oden has a lot of potential, and last night provided empirical evidence of this, but to expect a rookie to produce that statline for the next 73 games is unreasonable. And remember, the Blazers are trying to get to the playoffs this year, so Oden's development will at times need to take a back seat to what the team is doing.

   Coach McMillain is a smart man, and playing Oden off the bench for around 20 minutes a night should help Oden figure out how to play his game at this level as well as help the team get used to playing with Oden. It is important to remember that, as encouraging as Oden's personal play was last night, this team is out to win games reach it's potential- as a team... and I'm sure Greg Oden would agree... all this said, congratulations to Oden for playing his first solid NBA game!