Oden to go under the knife

Number 1 draft pick, Greg Oden, of the Portland Trail Blazers, will undergo surgery sometime this week to determine what is causing the pain in his right knee.

Since being drafted by the Blazers, Oden has had his tonsils removed after an illness during the NBA Summer League. He was recently working out in Portland when he start getting knee pains.

Portland is not revealing much about his problem, with a spokesperson only revealing that Greg and Coach Nate McMillan were unavailable for comment. SI.com reported that unsuccessful attempts were made to contact Oden’s agent, Mike Conley Sr.

Hopefully Oden will be healthy in time for the season, but if he is having exploratory surgery, as reported in the SI.com article (above), things could be pretty serious. It is possible that he could miss several weeks or even the entire season, like Clippers PG Shaun Livingston. If his knee is that bad, Portland will have a lot of trouble in the coming season as they have no doubt incorporated Oden into their strategy in a big way.

The first pick shows a lot of potential, but things aren’t looking too great right now. Good luck with the injury Greg – your team needs you healthy.