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As much as the public can make fun of Greg Oden's career, or cringe at the thought of Kevin Durant and LaMarcus Aldridge playing alongside one another, or even shake a fist at the NBA Salary structure that has paid out so much for potential, you have to feel a little for the guy.

If there's one thing worse than playing poorly, it's not playing at all.

And, Portland seems to have given up on him, or at least his knees.

If the only future career he's going to have in Portland is fictitious, here's our version:

THE BIG HURT

Written by
Kokoma Ika
and Cliff Pfenning


FADE IN:

EPISODE ONE

THE ICE MAN RETURNETH

INT. ROSE GARDEN (OUTSIDE LOCKER ROOM) - MID-MORNING

BLAZE, The official Portland Trail Blazers mascot, paces back and forth, in front of the Blazers locker room as a package delivery driver walks up, looks both ways, then hands him an envelope.

CLOSE-UP - ENVELOPE

In huge block letters - VAIL COLORADO ORTHOPEDIC CENTER - is
stamped in the left hand corner. In the center, Greg Oden.

Blaze looks around and sees no one.  He opens the package and pulls out a plain brown 9 X 12 envelope with X-RAY written in block letters in the center.  He frees the clasp and pulls out a single sheet of medical information, which he holds up to a light.

He stares at the X-RAY for a moment, then puts it back into the envelope.
His head slumps as he heads for the door to the locker room.


INT. WEIGHT ROOM - CONTINUOUS

GREG ODEN, a 7-foot, 285-pound basketball player, pedals vigorously on a
stationary bike.  He watches a television showing a replay of the 2007 NCAA final
between Ohio State and Florida.  A determined focus, a driven stare,
occupies his demeanor.
Sweat cascades down his face.

 A BLAZER TRAINER enters and heads straight over to Oden.

                    BLAZER TRAINER
    Man, you were a beast in that game.  
    I love the dunk that’s about to come up.

Greg slows down his pace, wipes his brow, and stops pedaling.

                    GREG ODEN
                      (smiles)
    Those were good times...

                    BLAZER TRAINER
    Seen anything yet?

                    GREG ODEN
    Just 25 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 blocks.

                    BLAZER TRAINER
    A delivery guy is supposed to be here soon.

He points at Oden’s knees

    Make sure you ice those down when you’re done.

                    GREG ODEN
    The ice machine.  I’m about ready to give it a first name.

The Blazer Trainer walks away.  Oden grabs the remote control off a stool next
to him and increases the volume on the TV.  He pedals harder and harder as the
game nears its conclusion with Florida winning.  As Florida celebrates, Blaze appears.
Oden slows down and stops.

Blaze walks over to Oden and pauses for one second, two seconds, three seconds.  
Then, he hands Oden the envelope.

                    GREG ODEN
     That bad, huh?

Oden takes hold of the envelope so the contents can slide out.  
He raises the X-RAY to the light and takes a deep breath.  
Then, he looks down at his knees.

                    GREG ODEN
    Man, the media is going to eat this up.  
    Sports radio is gonna eat this up.  
    My agent’s gonna hate me.  

He pauses

    This probably won’t even make Sportscenter.

He glances back down at his knees.

                    GREG ODEN
    Why do you guys hate me so much?

Oden looks fixedly at Blaze.

                    GREG ODEN
    Hey, get me some ice...

He casts his attention away for a moment, then looks back at Blaze scooping ice
out of the ice machine.

                    GREG ODEN
    Those guys from 20 years ago, 30 years ago, 40 years ago, you think
    their knees hurt after a game? Moses. Kareem. Mikan. Wilt. Those guys
    probably would’ve thought a micro-fracture was something that happened
    to a pencil. You think Bill Russell ever missed a season because his knees hurt?  
    Or his team sat him down because he was an investment? He probably would
    have told some writer the team didn’t want him to play because it didn’t want
    to sell tickets. Then, he would’ve put on a jersey, walked onto the court and
    grabbed 30 rebounds. Walton had major problems and he still won a title.

    What if I just played?  

    I gave myself the summer to heal as much as possible from this ...

He picks up the X-ray and glares at it.

    ... and then just played? I get paid whether I play or not.  Think
    they’ll sit me out because I grind my teeth when I run? Or I look like a convict
    when I’m not on the bench with ice on my knees? That would be a look for
    those point guards coming down the lane. “Hey boy, you don’t want to be coming
    down here because I’m not a center, I’m a defensive tackle! So you just stay
    out there in three-point land!”

Blaze looks at him and shakes his head

              GREG ODEN
    What? You saying I can’t act?
 
    The public would love me do death if I get on the court, even if I had to play with
    ice bags on my knees instead of knee pads.

Oden shakes his head slightly and grins

              GREG ODEN
    I could run for President if I could play 10 games.  
    “Ice Man!”  I already got my nickname.

He fixes his stare intently at Blaze.

                    GREG ODEN
    I know. There’s already an “Ice Man” in the Hall.  “The Ice Man Returneth!”  Sports Illustrated cover right there.
    Refrigerator companies will be begging to get me as a spokesman.

His head slumps, he looks at the floor and then back at
Blaze.  Blaze shoots a look back at him and tips his head
down slightly.

                    GREG ODEN
    Think I can do it?  Ten games?  If I could just play ten games. All those surgeries.  All that time off.  I bet no one even remembers
    the last time I played.  I barely remember.

    You know, I have 41 different suits - one for each home game I can’t play in.

Blaze shakes his head slightly

             GREG ODEN
    Yes, I’m only using 33 this season.
    I don’t want to wear those suits at games.
    I want to suit up in Nike, not Armani.

    If I could just play 10 games, I’ll bet they’d make a movie about me.
    You know that football movie ... “Rudy”? That guy didn’t play 10 games.  

Oden gets off the exercise bike and walks gingerly to a nearby couch and sits down.  
Blaze returns with two large bags of ice.  Oden puts them on his knees.

                    GREG ODEN
    If I could just play 10 games. We could pick the games, too. Home games.
    Important home games. Why do I need to play against the Hornets
    or Bobcats ... or the Spurs when they sit their starters?
    The team really only needs me for big home games and the playoffs.

    They could sell it as a 10-game package.
    We could make it a big deal when I do play. Tweet to the world - Oden
    on the floor tonight! I could appear ... yeah ... like a bullfighter!
    My own dance team ... “The Odenettes!”

    They could dress like nurses!

Blaze looks at the floor and puts his paw over his eyes
Oden pauses and rubs his forehead with the back of one hand.

Short pause

             GREG ODEN
    I had this dream the other night where the inside of my house had been
    transformed into the ice planet Hoth. And, this tall dude walks in and over
    to me and ... and it’s Wilt. He says to me, “Greg, I am your father.”

Oden looks at Blaze and shakes his head

            GREG ODEN
    This not playing is killing me. I’m goin’ nuts. I gotta get on the court.
    Play in front of people.
    Talk to reporters while I’m still sweating.
    Get a highlight on Sportscenter!
    There’s barely any centers in the league anymore. I could be an All-Star on 10 games.

    Man, I’m gonna do it!  I’m gonna play no matter how much it kills me.
    Ten games. We can film it as a documentary and then donate the proceeds
    from the DVD to a charity that helps kids walk.

Blaze and Oden stare at each other. Then Oden looks away and slowly shakes his head.

              GREG ODEN
    Gonna play. I’m gonna play. Man, I’m gonna play. Ten games.
    I’ll get my face back on that grain elevator across the street from the Garden.

Oden looks back at Blaze

              GREG ODEN
    Hey, tonight, get me a photo of Wilt and one of Russell. And Walton. And the name
    of his surgeon. We don’t want that guy.
    And, look up the history of ice ... get me some background so I can dazzle
    all those bloggers who work out the salary cap in their Cheerios.

    ”The Ice Man Returneth.”  

    I’ve got a college buddy who can start that onto the web.
    
Blaze nods his head slightly

              GREG ODEN
    My body is gonna hurt like hell, but I’m gonna play.

Blaze holds the envelope forward and slowly rips it in two.
Then he and Oden clasp forearms.

              GREG ODEN
    I’ll ask Obama to be my VP. He can do that, you know?

                                              FADE TO BLACK:

The Oregon Ducks will play host to Oregon State Sunday in the first Civil War of the men's basketball season and tip-off with their first four-game win streak in Pac-12 play in five years.

Oregon swept the Los Angeles schools at home a week after sweeping the Arizona schools on the road and is 15-5 overall, 6-2 in conference play, and tied for the conference lead with California.

Oregon State enters the game with season momentum as well after also sweeping the LA schools, including a 78-59 humbling of USC Saturday. The Beavers had four players in double figures led by Jared Cunningham's 18, and improved to 13-7, 3-5.

The Ducks rallied from a 13-point deficit to beat UCLA 75-68 Saturday at Matthew Knight Arena behind EJ Singler, who scored a career-high 26 points, and Garret Sim, who added 20, including a 7-0 run during the 13-0 run that started the second half. The Oregon rally also got a huge assist with a pair of blocks from center Tony Woods. Singler made 16 of 17 free throws in the game.

Oregon outscored UCLA at the foul line by 18 points, hitting 28 of 32 free throws, while the Bruins made just 10 of 21.

Oregon State fueled its win Saturday with 10 steals, but the Beavers made just 12 of 21 free-throw attempts.

In other highlights for this week, the Trail Blazers return to the Rose Garden for games Monday against Sacramento and Tuesday against Memphis.

The Winterhawks also return to Portland for a Tuesday-night game against Everett after consecutive losses in Spokane over the weekend.

And, the Portland Timbers open their second season in Major League Soccer with training camp Monday at Jeld-Wen Field.

PRO

Blazers prep for Sacramento

Timbers open training camp

Winterhawks face Everett Tuesday

COLLEGE

Oregon and Oregon State head for Civil War Week

PREP

Jesuit and South Medford top Class 6A boys and girls rankings

No. 2 Central Catholic survives upset bid by David Douglas

CLUBS

Oregon fencing lures North American Cup stop

It was just two years ago that the Roosevelt High football team struggled to score a touchdown and then the school suffered an athletic indignity when it's athletic program got dropped from Class 5A to 4A, where it no longer played in the Portland Interscholastic League as it had for the previous eight decades.

Monday, the Roughriders returned to the PIL beginning in fall of 2012.

In a move unseen just a month earlier, Roosevelt requested and received approval from the OSAA Executive Board to move back to Class 5A where it will rejoin Benson, Cleveland, Franklin, Jefferson, Madison and Wilson as part of the longest-lasting district in the state. Roosevelt's attendance average allows for it to be classified as a 4A school, but schools are allowed to "play up" one classification upon request. Jefferson could also be classified as 4A due to its attendance.

Grant and Lincoln are also members of the PIL, but play at Class 6A as part of a special district that includes numerous other schools - from Redmond to South Eugene -  depending on the sport.

The Roughriders will rejoin the PIL as a favorite to win the league in football after a 6-3 season and ranking of No. 20 in Class 4A. Of the six PIL schools in 5A, only Jefferson posted a winning record (6-5) and five of its wins were over PIL schools, who finished ranked in the bottom five spots in Class 5A. During the 2009 season, the Roughriders were winless and were shutout four times, including their opening three games.

Roosevelt's move was one of a number of classification shifts that inluded Scio, which has played in the past three Class 2A football title games, moving up from 2A to 3A.

Most of the classification movement was downward.

Waldport, Myrtle Point and Grant Union moved from 3A to 2A, while Crow and Yoncalla moved from 2A to 1A.

Thurston (6A) and Toledo (3A) requested a move down, but were denied. Marshfield is looking into moving from 5A to 4A and South Eugene has also hinted at a move from 6A to 5A. If both Thurston and South Eugene moved to 5A, it would leave only Sheldon as a Class 6A school in the Eugene area.

Among the other news from the Executive Board meeting, the upcoming split of Redmond's student population will move the school to 5A, while the newly created Ridgeview High will enter athletic play as a 4A school.

The trio of former Oregon prep basketball stars will be in line for national attention Saturday as they all face entertaining match-ups, two of which will be televised nationally.

Terrence Ross, a standout at Jefferson High in Portland, will lead Washington against Duke at Madison Square Garden, beginning at 9 a.m. on CBS. Ross is averaging 16.6 points per game for the Huskies, who are 4-3 against a slew of solid opponents.

Former Grant High standout Mike Moser, who is averaging 15.8 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, leads UNLV against Wisconsin Saturday night.

And Terrence Jones, one of the nation's top professional prospects, leads Kentucky against Indiana Saturday at 2:15 p.m., averaging 15 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

Jesuit grat Kyle Wiltjer is playing a key role as a reserve for Kentucky, averaging 6.4 points per game in limited action.

Oregon (6-2) begins a seven-game homestand Saturday against Fresno State.

Oregon State (7-1) plays host to Idaho Friday in the start of a five-game homestand.

Portland State (5-2) plays at Utah Valley in Orem, Utah, to start a stretch of games in which it plays on the road six times in seven outings. The Vikings play at Oregon Monday and at Oregon State, Dec. 18.

Portland (3-6) plays host to Ohio University Saturday.

Kyle Singler en el Lucentum from Sandra Vazquez Fotografia on Vimeo.

If you remember prep standout Mike Moser of Grant and followed him only casually, you probably remember him landing at UCLA two years ago.

He stayed there a year.

He showed up on the national radar this week, though, at UNLV after the Runnin' Rebels beat North Carolina over the weekend in the championship game of a tourney in Las Vegas.

Moser had 16 points and 18 rebounds in the 90-80 win and was named national Player of the Week by ESPN. Wednesday, he went off for 34 points and 10 rebounds in a 94-88 double-overtime win at UC Santa Barbara.

Not too shabby for someone who basically disappeared at UCLA.

It's great to see the accolades for a person who is now in the same draft class as former Jefferson standout Terrence Jones, regarded as one of the top players in the nation by numerous sources. Moser might not yet be in the same class as Jones in terms of pro potential, but he's making some great strides and putting up numbers that'll keep him moving there. Wednesday, he hit five three-pointers.

Moser left Grant as something of a raw talent, a player who could score and play defense, but mostly because he was taller and had longer arms than opponents. He hadn't yet grown into the muscular player who could handle opponents near a basket, on offense or defense. That seems to have changed.

What makes Moser's strides most notable is that he's in a different class in terms of reputation for a lot of people who knew both players in North and Northeast Portland. Moser played on both ends of the court, while Jones regularly didn't cross mid-court to play defense as a junior or senior. Jefferson still won the state title both seasons, but that only made those people close to the teams it beat angrier with his apparent lack of interest.

Moser didn't play that way - give some credit to his coach Tony Broadous for that.

Now that UNLV is ranked in the Top 25 and is 8-0 with potential, Moser is likely to start drawing some comparisons to Jones as both are small forwards in the NBA. Jones might be the better player, currently, but Moser might be the hungrier player and that has a way of turning into a longer career.

http://oregonsports.com/prep/winter/boys-basketball/grants-ice-cream-man

Imagine the state of disbelief University of Oregon fans will be in if Oregon State were able to somehow win in Autzen Stadium on Saturday.

Oregon State. The Beavers. The team that lost to Sacramento State this seaon.

Oregon was on a path to the national championship game until its 38-35 loss to Southern Cal Saturday in Eugene and now needs a win over the Beavers to secure its spot in the inaugural Pac-12 Championship game, which would be played at Autzen, Dec. 2. A win in the title game will boost the Ducks into the Rose Bowl, Jan. 2, which would be the program's third straight appearance in a BCS Bowl Game under coach Chip Kelly.

OSU was on a path to getting creamed by the Ducks, but got some momentum going with a 38-21 win over Washington at Reser Stadium Saturday, beating the Huskies by the same margin as the Ducks did earlier in the season, 17 (34-17). Quarterback Sean Mannion threw for 339 yards and receiver James Rodgers became the school's all-time leading receiver with 222.

Oregon struggled with turnovers against USC, with three, including two inside the Trojans' 20-yard line. Trailing 38-20 in the fourth quarter, though, the Ducks were able to rally and nearly tie the game with a field goal in the final seconds.

A loss Saturday would drop Oregon out of the Pac-12 title game and into a second-tier bowl game, and be a historic/legendary win for Oregon State.

Game time Saturday is 12:30 p.m., with ABC set to cover the Ducks for the third straight week.

It's Fan Appreciation Day at Reser Stadium in Corvallis Saturday, and that'll be especially true this season as the Oregon State football team tries to build some momentum for the Civil War next week with a win over Washington.

The Beavers, who enter the game just 2-8, beat Northwest rival Washington State earlier in the season, so a win over Washington would be another small bit of inspiration heading to Eugene to play the BCS-bound Ducks, Nov. 26.

Oregon State's season has been such a struggle that local fans are starting to look at Portland State, which is 8-2 in FCS play, as being the second-best team in the state, especially after the Beavers opened the season with an overtime loss to Sacramento State of FCS.

The Oregon State-Washington game begins at noon.

Saturday is a rarity in which all three Oregon Div. I teams play at home.

Portland State is host to Weber State at 1 p.m. in a must-win game for the Vikings if they have any chance of reaching the FCS playoffs. It's also a chance to win nine games in coach Nigel Burton's second season.

No. 4 Oregon plays host to Southern Cal at 5 p.m. in a nationally-televised game, which the Ducks need to not only win, but win convincingly to impress Eastern voters in the build-up to a BCS title game dependent on Oklahoma State losing to Oklahoma next week.

Oregon's 53-30 splattering of Stanford, and an upset at Boise State, earned the Ducks a move to No. 4 in the BCS rankings released Sunday night.

They're still a spot behind Alabama, the highest-ranked team with one loss.

LSU and Oklahoma State, both unbeaten, are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. Both Alabama and Oregon have lost to LSU.

Oklahoma is rated fifth. The Sooners, who've lost only to unranked Texas Tech, have Oklahoma State left on their schedule.

Oregon closes it season with home games against Southern Cal Saturday and then Oregon State, Nov. 26. The first Pac-12 Conference Title Game is the following Friday, Dec. 2, and will be held in Eugene with an Oregon win in one of its next two games.

IN OTHER NEWS

The University of Portland women's soccer team advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a shootout win over Oregon State Friday. The Pilots, who were just 9-9-1 entering the game, play top-seeded Florida State in the second round at the University of Memphis Friday. The teams met in the first week of the season with Portland scoring a 2-1 win.

Concordia University, an annual contender for the NAIA women's soccer title, will play host to an opening-round game in the national tournament Saturday in its newly-constructed athletic facility known as Touminen Yard. The game against Westminster (Utah) College is part of a doubleheader that includes the men's team, which will play host to the University of Great Falls. Mont.

The women's team is in its 11th-straight NAIA Tournament.

Portland's Winterhawks extended its win streak to five games and kept pace with Tri-City in the Western Hockey League's US Division this weekend. The Hawks (13-7-1-1, 28 points) beat Spokane Friday and Saturday with both games ending in a shootout. Portland plays at Everett Friday and at Seattle Saturday.

VIEW MORE STORIES

PRO

COLLEGE

PREP

CLUB

Terrence Jones, who passed on heading into the NBA Draft in spring, has been named the third-best college player according to rivals.com, which released its list Monday night.

Jones, a 6-foot-8 forward heading for his sophomore season at Kentucky, is listed behind 6-9 center Jered Sullinger of Ohio State and 6-8 forward Harrison Barnes of  North Carolina.

The list of the 50 best players was produced by writers who cover college basketball nationally. Their assessment reads:

"He had an excellent freshman season (15.7 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 1.9 bpg, 1.1 spg, 31.4 mpg), then surprised many by sticking around. He's a tough, aggressive player in the low post, but needs to curb his tendency to take shots outside his range; he shot just 44.2 percent from the field last season. His return, coupled with another great UK recruiting class, gives the Wildcats a legit shot at the national title."

The Wildcats begin their season Friday at home against Marist.

A weekend of home games should get the Portland Winterhawks ready for a trip through Canada next week.

The Hawks, who are 4-4 in their first three weeks of the season, play host to Kamloops tonight, Brandon on Saturday and Saskatoon Tuesday before heading on a nine-game, two-week tour through Canada, an annual trip the team makes.

Kamloops and Brandon are both 4-2, while Saskatoon is 6-1.

All three home games are set for Memorial Coliseum.

Portland’s Canada Tour begins in Edmonton, Alb., Friday.

ESPN VISITS EUGENE

ESPN's "College Game Day" set will be on hand outside Autzen Stadium in Eugene Saturday as the Ducks prepare and then play Arizona State.

Oregon heads into the game at 4-1 and ranked No. 9, while Arizona State is 5-1 and ranked No. 18.

Game time is 7:15 p.m.

The Ducks are averaging 56 points per game during their past six games and are the highest ranked team with a loss.

PILOTS NEET A WIN
The University of Portland women’s soccer team will be looking for a big win tonight when it plays host to San Diego in a West Coast Conference match at Merlo Field.

In one of its roughest years in the past decade, the Pilots enter tonight’s game with at 5-6-1 after losing their conference opener to Brigham Young last Thursday. Tonight’s game is the start of three home games in eight days. Portland plays host to St. MAry’s Sunday and then Santa Clara next Friday in a match that will be televised on ESPNU.