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When the Trail Blazers won the 2007 NBA Draft Lottery, and essentially the rights to draft the coveted big man, it was absolute, pure joy in Portland.
We cheered. We danced in our living rooms. We held rallies in downtown Portland to welcome our newest hero and to celebrate the return of Rip City.
It marked the start of a new era, the beginning of great things for the franchise after years of disappointment.
After all this time, Oden was the final piece of the championship puzzle. This was our time.
We all eagerly awaited the future success that seemed just over the horizon.
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When Oden went down with season-ending surgery before his career even began, we were shocked. How could this have happened? Why now? What does this mean? Fans were in complete disbelief, and angry that all of our optimism would now have to be put on hold as the Blazers try to recover from such a devastating blow.
I remember pounding my fists and cursing. This was supposed to be the beginning of our glory days! It isn't fair to us, the fans! Why do we have to continually suffer?
We just finished going through years of mediocrity. When will this disappointment end?
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When Oden finally did make his debut in the fall of 2008, our anger turned to frustration.
Briefly during training camp, when it was announced that Oden would finally see the court, we were excited. Finally, it begins now.
But it was our expectations that were to blame when we were so bewildered by the start of Oden's playing career. He could barely run or jump, let alone execute a low-post move. He often looked lost on defense and tried to force things on offense.
This was not the same guy we drafted. We've waited this long, and this is what we get?
Sportswriters called his performance "underwhelming." And fans were left scratching their heads. Was this just the immediate byproduct of his surgery? Does he just need time to recover?
Will we ever see the real Greg Oden?
But it was our expectations that were to blame when we were so bewildered by the start of Oden's playing career. He could barely run or jump, let alone execute a low-post move. He often looked lost on defense and tried to force things on offense.
This was not the same guy we drafted. We've waited this long, and this is what we get?
Sportswriters called his performance "underwhelming." And fans were left scratching their heads. Was this just the immediate byproduct of his surgery? Does he just need time to recover?
Will we ever see the real Greg Oden?
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When the fall of 2009 rolled around, fans were ready for anything from Oden.
And suddenly, that joy from 2007 had returned.
Oden was delivering on the basketball court. His points, blocks, rebounds, assists and field goal percentage were all up. Finally healthy, Oden was anxious to show the world what he could do on the basketball court.
For fans, it was a wake up call. This is why the Blazers drafted him, for performances like this. Coming off several injuries and seeing him make this improvement was a sign that he was just starting to tap into his potential as a powerful basketball player. Fans knew that he was only going to get better from here.
But the best laid plans...
And suddenly, that joy from 2007 had returned.
Oden was delivering on the basketball court. His points, blocks, rebounds, assists and field goal percentage were all up. Finally healthy, Oden was anxious to show the world what he could do on the basketball court.
For fans, it was a wake up call. This is why the Blazers drafted him, for performances like this. Coming off several injuries and seeing him make this improvement was a sign that he was just starting to tap into his potential as a powerful basketball player. Fans knew that he was only going to get better from here.
But the best laid plans...
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When a freak injury broke Oden's kneecap and forced him to miss the rest of the season, it was the moment Blazer fans stopped feeling sorry for themselves, and felt sorry for Oden.
We saw what he was capable of. We saw the hard work he put into his return to the court. This latest injury was not this kid's fault, and he did not deserve another setback in the face of all he had done.
Fans started to put aside their petty notions that their fandom was cursed, and faced the realization that this was a young kid going through about a traumatic of a career as you could ever imagine.
Seeing the work of the past months and his inspired early season play derailed like this, it made Oden human in our eyes. This was real. This wasn't TV, or NBA 2k9. This was our brother who was in pain.
Throughout Oden's early career and the injuries and surgeries that accompanied it, Blazer fans always had a sense of "Why us?"
This was the moment were we finally asked "why him?"
We saw what he was capable of. We saw the hard work he put into his return to the court. This latest injury was not this kid's fault, and he did not deserve another setback in the face of all he had done.
Fans started to put aside their petty notions that their fandom was cursed, and faced the realization that this was a young kid going through about a traumatic of a career as you could ever imagine.
Seeing the work of the past months and his inspired early season play derailed like this, it made Oden human in our eyes. This was real. This wasn't TV, or NBA 2k9. This was our brother who was in pain.
Throughout Oden's early career and the injuries and surgeries that accompanied it, Blazer fans always had a sense of "Why us?"
This was the moment were we finally asked "why him?"
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But when it was announced that Oden would need season-ending surgery again, even before he came back from his previous season-ending surgery, Blazer fans didn't feel sadness.
We don't feel anger, frustration, confused, or scared.
We don't feel anger, frustration, confused, or scared.
We feel numb.
It's almost as if we have been desensitized to the injuries, the surgeries, the rehabilitation, the apologies, the promises, all of it.
Oden's status has always been the cloud over the Blazers. Sometimes we've seen dashes of sunlight. Other times, when it's rained, it's poured. But Blazer fans don't want to keep looking at the clouds anymore wondering if we're going to get a good day.
Oden's career has given us the highest of highs. I'll never forget the optimism and enthusiasm that followed Draft Day 2007, the feeling of hope. We'll always hand on to that moment.
Oden's career has given us the lowest of lows. Injury after injury after injury, never allowing Greg to fully show what he was capable of.
Greg, the team, the management and the fans all deserve better. Maybe in time, the memories won't seem so bad.
But as of right now, we just don't want it all anymore.
It's almost as if we have been desensitized to the injuries, the surgeries, the rehabilitation, the apologies, the promises, all of it.
Oden's status has always been the cloud over the Blazers. Sometimes we've seen dashes of sunlight. Other times, when it's rained, it's poured. But Blazer fans don't want to keep looking at the clouds anymore wondering if we're going to get a good day.
Oden's career has given us the highest of highs. I'll never forget the optimism and enthusiasm that followed Draft Day 2007, the feeling of hope. We'll always hand on to that moment.
Oden's career has given us the lowest of lows. Injury after injury after injury, never allowing Greg to fully show what he was capable of.
Greg, the team, the management and the fans all deserve better. Maybe in time, the memories won't seem so bad.
But as of right now, we just don't want it all anymore.
