Ex Buckeyes in the NBA Western Conference for 2008-09
Mike Conley, Greg
Oden and Kosta Koufos
By Bill Smith
Memphis
Mike
Conley started 46 games last year for one of the worst teams in the
league. He averaged 9.4 points 4.2
assists and 2.6 rebounds a game but averaged only 26 minutes a game. He had an up and down year but is playing in
the summer league to further refine his skills, develop more stamina and to get
a little more physical. He will be the
starter in 08-09 and should have a little more help. The team drafted O.J. (money in the bank at
USC) Mayo to play shooting guard. They
also added Marc Gasol as a back up center.
Portland
Greg
Oden did not play last year because of microsurgery on his right knee in
September. Anytime you hear microsurgery
you have to be concerned. However he was
busy in the community. He has already
started a foundation for under privileged kids and has been named to a White
House physical fitness commission. He
will be the starter when he gets totally healthy which should be sometime in
the first month of the season. The one
thing that the team will not do is to risk putting him back on the floor before
he is ready.
"I'm
still rehabbing, but I'm ready to play," Oden told The Associated Press on
Wednesday while in Los Angeles
to attend the ESPY Awards. "I can work out, I can lift, no 5-on-5, no
3-on-3. That's where everything is going, towards me being able to play when
the season starts, but I'm ready."
Until then
as we reported earlier, Oden is taking a summer school biology class at Ohio State,
where he left after leading the Buckeyes to the 2007 national title game -- a
loss to Florida. "I'm still classified as a
freshman," the 7-footer said, grinning.
Being back on campus, though, is a constant reminder that he can't play
basketball just yet. Oden plans to
pursue a degree during his offseasons. He's undecided on a major, but he wants
to do something with food. "They don't
have a culinary degree at Ohio
State, so I figure
nutrition and then try to do something with that," he said. "I like
to cook, I like food." Asked his
specialty in the kitchen, Oden paused and said, "Hamburger Helper and tuna
fish."
Oden called
his rehabilitation "tough and long," but he said his teammates kept
him in the loop last season. “It wasn't
like I could even get down because I was always around the guys," he said.
"I feel like I'm part of the team."
In an
interview with Pulse Doug Gottlieb Oden said he has been working out getting
ready weighted 275 at OSU now 295 with mussel Bayless will help him
inside. Microfracture surgery 80-85
percent back. He said he has no pain but
is just uncomfortable. He has been
focusing on footwork , stamina and perfecting his bank shot.
Utah
Kosta
Koufos steps into the Jazz that desperately needs a back up center. The two “vets” that backed up starter Mehmet
Okur combined for 1.6 points a game.
UCH! Koufos' offensive work
around the basket should give him a good chance for significant minutes in the
front line rotation by the middle of the season. The latest news on Koufos is that he will be
playing in the summer league.
Next Friday—NBA Summer league preview.
Bill Smith is a
former coach of several semi-pro teams and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://BrutusReport.com. He has
also published several novels on http://ebooks-library.com/index.cfm and
edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com