Oden delves into cyberspace
PORTLAND — Greg Oden may be getting a little bored while rehabbing his knee.
For a little fun, the injured 7-footer launched "Oden's Outlet Pass" on his blog.
He's going to be posting surveys about NCAA hoops topics. Once everyone has weighed in, he's going to pick the best three responses and send the winner a copy of College Hoops 2K8 (for you oldsters, that's a video game).
The first question was: Who will be the most exciting player in college hoops this year?
Oden's take from his blog: "I think Eric Gordon because i played with him and I know he has skills. He is not a big talked about guy in the news but he is a killa on the court!"
Gordon and Oden played together as preps in Indiana.
One of those who weighed in was Trail Blazers teammate Josh McRoberts, who videotaped his response and put it up on YouTube.com. These new Blazers are sure media savvy.
"I'm sitting here in my room, I just saw on Greg's blog that he's having a little contest to see who the most exciting player in college basketball will be this year," McRoberts says. "I'm going to go ahead and say Gerald Henderson. He's one of my best friends, he's a great player. He's going to be one of the best players in college basketball this year."
Henderson is a 6-foot-4 sophomore guard who plays for No. 13 Duke. McRoberts was a forward at Duke, selected by the Blazers with the 37th overall pick in the June draft. Oden was the No. 1 pick, out of Ohio State.
McRoberts suffered a severe left ankle sprain in the second practice of the season and played a minute in his first game, the Blazers' 101-92 loss at Charlotte Monday night.
Oden, of course, is out for the season after having microfracture surgery on his right knee, and is going through the rehabilitation process.
u
ROY NEXT?: Blazers guard Brandon Roy is one of five athletes nominated for ESPN The Magazine's annual NEXT issue as the next big thing in sports.
New York Yankee pitcher Joba Chamberlain, West Virginia running back Noel Devine, American sprinter Tyson Gay and San Francisco 49er linebacker Patrick Willis are also candidates.
Fans can vote at www.espn.com. The winner will be on the Dec. 5 issue.
Previous winners include Yao Ming, Brian Urlacher, LeBron James and Reggie Bush.
u
STREAK ENDS: While the Trail Blazers had lost seven on the road, at least fans could find promise in their perfect 4-0 record at home.
Until the Blazers hosted the New Jersey Nets.
The Nets scored the final eight points in a 106-101 victory over the Blazers at the Rose Garden on Wednesday night.
"They're all tough to swallow, I've felt bad after all of our losses," guard Brandon Roy said. "But this one is a little tougher because it's at home."
The Blazers have lost five straight overall heading into tonight's game against the Sacramento Kings.