Greg Oden: Former Golden Boy Looks To Return to His Golden Form

Greg Oden isn't playing basketball.

He isn't working on his post moves.

He isn't running, shooting, or jumping.

He isn't even in the gym.

But Greg Oden is making strides towards greatness that can only come in the darkest of times.

The Former No. 1 pick is beginnning to understand the situation he is in.

But before I go any deeper, let me start this thing from the top.

Greg Oden had a rocky start to his career after missing what would have been his rookie season due to precautionary microfracture surgery. Then, In his regular season debut the following year, Greg Landed on the foot of Derek Fisher and sprained his ankle, causing him to miss significant time.

Later on in the season, Greg and Corey Maggette of the Golden State Warriors banged knees.

The result? Chipped kneecap for Greg Oden.

Now there is this, the Fractured kneecap of the same knee. I suppose it could have been worse, but you never want to see this happen to a good guy like Greg.

To everyone surrounding Greg Oden and the Portland Trail Blazers, the contact-less fracture of Greg Oden's kneecap was a resounding issue, one that caused everyone to question the future of the former first round pick.

Even I questioned his durability.

But after some digging, I felt that this wasn't just a problem with Greg Oden's seven foot frame, although his size does multiply his problems.

Let me start off with the professional's opinion on this issue because I am in no way shape or form a doctor.

But in an interview over the summer, a member of the Trail Blazers medical staff said that the reason Greg's patella split in two was due to the sheer power generated by his thigh muscles.

Yes, that is right.

Greg Oden is too strong for his own good.

And it can be explained by going to the root of the problem, during his rookie season.

Now, as I said earlier, Greg Oden and the team agreed that a precautionary microfracture surgery that would end his rookie season. During his rehabilitation, Greg Oden lifted weights like there was no tomorrow.

His body weight drifted above 300 pounds (currently 285 pounds) and the team promptly told him to quit gaining weight, for obvious reasons.

His routine was cut down to mostly leg workouts, building muscle to support the knee as his upper body was to be toned, not built for power, as shown in this video done by The Oregonianduring the workouts before the 2009 season.

Let me be clear. First off, no one could have predicted this. This is not the weight trainer's fault, nor is it the team doctor's fault.

It is God's will.

Second off, leg workouts are great, especially for big centers.

But what happened in Greg's case was that his large muscle groups became imbalanced. Knee pain can be caused by a variety of issues, but it is always the body's way of letting us know that it disagrees with an activity we are doing, and in some cases that we are damaging ourselves.

In Greg's case, the thigh muscle was pulling in the tendons of the knee, but there wasn't enough counter strength to support the opposite movement. Now I'm no doctor, but what he should look to do is support the knee by building up the smaller muscles that counteract the thigh muscles primary action.

In other words, stop lifting so damn much that your thigh muscles can tear your kneecap in half. But while your at it, balance your strength between all of the muscle groups, not just the ones that help you jump higher or run faster, but the ones that support said muscles and tendons.

This is good news.

For once, the team has a clear idea about the problems the former golden boy is experiencing.

And I don't care what planet you are from, Greg Oden, when healthy, is dominant. He is everything that the Portland Trail Blazers drafted and everything they could have expected.

He is more important to the team than Kevin Durant could have been...when he is healthy.

If Greg Oden plays an entire season, including the postseason, the Portland Trail Blazers will be in contention.

That is how important Greg Oden is to the future of the Portland Trail Blazers organization. Say all you will, bust or not, but the one thing that you cannot argue is that Greg Oden still has a giant ceiling, one that has the ability to change the landscape of the National Basketball Association as we know it.

But for once, we finally have some good news involving the former No. 1 pick, and that is something that Portland has been craving ever since he was drafted.

(NEWS: Greg Oden and Kevin Pritchard, along with the Trail Blazers training and medical staff are set to meet on Tuesday and discuss Greg's offseason rehabilitation plans, as well as address the problems surrounding Oden's knees)