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  • May 23, 2007 06:56 PM ET

Kevin Durant would be the best fit and an immediate impact for the Portland Trail Blazers!

cdbbigdaddy (4-7-0) vs TheDeity (29-4-2)
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Everyone keeps saying that Oden will be the #1 pick in the draft and he probably would be if the Trail Blazers didn't have that pick. But if you look at their roster and what their needs are Durant would fit in nicely. Adding an extra 10-12 points at the small forward position would make the Blazers an immediate playoff contender.


The thing is the Trail Blazer's only goal is not to simply make the playoffs, they want to be able to contend for an NBA championship. Oden gives them a body in the middle that will cement them for years. I like to equivocate this to Jerry West and Bil Russell, you can argue that West is the better player, but there is a reason Russell has all the rings. Out west the Blazers need to have a big man to boost them into contention. Durant will be a nice player in the NBA, many all star games and plenty of impact, but he does not carry the bravado of Greg Oden.


If you look at their roster, they have a handfull of big men in Randolph, Przybilla, Magloire and Aldridge. Aldridge had the heart issue last year and should be ok. While those names may not jump out at you it shows that they have some big bodies. They also have a weakness at the small forward spot and Durant would be an immediate impact while those big guys pound the boards. They wouldn't need their center to put up points if they had Randolph, Roy and Durant doing the scoring.


The only center on their roster with any talent at all is Aldridge, and I am not going to bank my future on him. If he develops into a great player, I doubt there would be any harm in twin towering your team and asking Randolph to play the other forward position. All you are acknowledging is Durant's offensive presence, Oden will alter the way opposing teams run their half court set. Unlike other center you have on their roster, he is a defensive monster. Oden will put up about 15 points, 12 boards, and 3 blocks regularly in contests. Durant may score more points, but that is all he will have on Oden in the end.


That's what they said about Andrew Bogut. Oden is skinny, he will get pushed around in the NBA. Look how long it took Yao to finally become a good solid center. Oden was great against college competition, but he has a much greater chance of struggling in the NBA than a player like Durant. Durant will be the ROY and the Blazers will be able to get at least a 6 seed in the west. The ghost of Sam Bowie will haunt the Blazers if they take Oden.


Taking Durant is closer to taking Sam Bowie than Greg Oden. Everyone has been talking about Oden since he was a junior in high school. Bogut? Not so much. Oh and didn't Yao start in the All Star game his rookie year?

But seriously, you do not go wrong taking the big man in the NBA. Since Michael Jordan has left the game, it is impossible to argue that Shaq has been the player most likely to lead you to the championship. He may not be the most talented or the most influential, but he is a big and powerful big man that completely alters the game. Seattle will have a nice player in Durant, but the Blazers have championships in Oden.

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May 23, 2007  07:24 PM ET
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Oden is a good big man but Lamarcus Aldrige is the future big man for that team. They had TRAVIS OUTLAW starting at the 4 and Randolph at the 3. Randolph or Durant would be a better fit at the 4. Durant is like Tracy McGrady in Kevin Garnett's body you can't pass a guy like him up.

May 23, 2007  07:40 PM ET
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TRAVIS OUTLAW only started one game.

May 23, 2007  07:58 PM ET
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I hope the Blazers take Oden, so Seattle can get Durant.

May 23, 2007  08:00 PM ET
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lol...there you go teddyj......good thinking

May 23, 2007  10:56 PM ET
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I think both guys here make good points, but again, there's just so much accelerated hype over Greg Oden. It's just very presumptuous to look at Portland as a future multiple championship team based on what has been a rather uneven, inconsistent, and foul-prone player that Oden proved to be thus far. And this is why he would have been so much better off staying in college, and taking the steps to develop the kind of all-around game that could justify the almost unified belief that the media invests in him.

To equate a Durant choice with how badly Portland missed the boat by taking Sam Bowie really is a big stretch...Durant is the more NBA ready of the two, the better all-around player, and has a great chance to make an immediate impact for what will most likely be for the Sonics.

And, what people are missing about Durant vs. Oden, so to speak, is that it was Durant who was the better rebounder, and even managed to average a couple block per game, to boot.

Durant can be that impact player right away, while Oden, by comparison, seems a lot more of a project at this point in time.

 
May 24, 2007  12:27 AM ET
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good points adams300, another factor is Durant is so much more versitile, he can play 3-4 positions on the floor and that makes him more valuable. Traditionally centers take a couple of years to adjust to the NBA game. Oden will have an extra fould to work with, but he needs to work on that area of his game otherwise he will not be a valuable NBA player. Opposing teams will exploit his proneness for fouls,

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