(PHOTO: REUTERS/Danny Moloshok)NBA player Greg Oden, of the Portland Trail Blazers, arrives at the premiere of "Real Steel" in Los Angeles, Oct. 2, 2011.
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This past Monday Portland Trailblazer's center Greg Oden was having minor surgery to remove debris in his knee, but the surgeon found more damage than he expected. Oden instead had to undergo microfracture surgery and will be out for the entire season, The Washington Post reported.
Greg Oden's professional basketball career has been plagued with injuries and unfortunately missing the season is a sad song Oden has heard before. As The Washington Post reported, Oden has not played in an NBA game since Dec. 2009. Monday was Oden's third microfracture surgery. It was the second microfracture surgery on his left knee, and he has had one similar surgery on his right knee. He has also had surgery for a fractured kneecap.
In a statement Trail Blazers President Larry Miller said, "It's hard to put into words the heartbreak for everyone involved, but especially for Greg. He's a young man who has experienced a great number of physical challenges in his playing career and today is yet another significant setback for him. We have a lot of empathy for Greg and his family during this difficult time."
The Trail Blazers took the 7-foot tall center from Ohio State as a first round draft pick in 2007, and back then Oden's career looked bright. He has played a total of 82 games with the Blazers, and in those 82 games he averaged 9.4 points and 7.3 rebounds.
Before Monday night's game against the Lakers, Blazers coach Nate McMillan commented on Oden. He said, "I'm sure he's saying, 'Why me?' Sometimes in life, things like that happen, and you wonder why it's happening to you. Some of these injuries have occurred, not only on the floor but off the floor. There's really not an explanation for why, or sometimes how they're happening. I'm sure it's been a frustrating start for him."
When Blazers general manager Chad Buchanan was asked if Oden's most recent injury would have long-term career effects, Buchanan said, "He's recovered from a couple of these before – his last two microfracture lesions have healed fine. So there's no reason to think he couldn't come back as long as he shows the work ethic and desire that he's had in the past to come back."
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