Man I'd LOVE that. He was an amazing prospect and played pretty darn well when he got on the court. He never really got up to speed with the pacing of the game and was consistently in foul trouble, but you could see the hype was legitimate. If he had remained healthy, everyone agreed his worst case scenario would be Dwight Howard... just an incredible physical specimen with amazing defensive timing and instincts.
I know it's seen as a long shot at this point, but the idea of him miraculously reaching his potential while playing on the Heat makes me nauseous. I'd LOVE to take a chance on him in Boston. Very little could make me more excited than rolling the dice on Oden. Low risk...unlimited potential reward.
I mean, imagine if he just ceiling'd out at 11-10 and 2 blocks, while shooting 55% from the field. That's a possible scenario, right? That could happen?
Rondo
Bradley
Not Jeff Green
Sullinger
Oden
I really like that idear.
Like I said, he never really got the pacing down and got in foul trouble. It's something Perk struggled with early in his career too. It's something I have zero doubt he'd adjust to with time on the court.. he just never had the time. Still.. the raw talent was very clear. In his second season (21 games) he averaged 11 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.3 blocks in 24 minutes while shooting 60% ... 4 fouls per game was the reason why he didn't get more minutes.
If you projected that over 36 minutes, it's 17 points, 13 rebounds, 3.4 blocks ...
If he can ever get back into the kind of shape he had been in... he's absolutely worth any risk you wish to take. He wasn't a bust in the sense he wasn't good... it was just injuries. You'd take a healthy young injury-free Greg Oden over 98% of the players in this league.