| Former Buckeyes Greg Oden (above) and Michael Redd will don the red, white and blue for the USA Basketball team. |
The 2007 NBA Draft is a month away and Greg Oden already has a roster spot.
The seven-foot, 280-pound phenomenon was one of eight players to be selected to the USA Basketball Senior National Team last week. In a historic season that Buckeye fans won’t soon forget, the 2007 campaign saw Oden dominate the opposition leading Ohio State in scoring (15.7 ppg.), rebounding (9.6 rpg.), field goals made (189), field goal percentage (189-307/.616), foul shots attempted (196), offensive rebounds (113), defensive rebounds (193), total rebounds (306), blocks (105) and points scored (501).
With Oden becoming a member of the USA squad, it is only the latest honor the negator has received over the course of the last several months. Over the 2006-07 season, Oden was tagged as Associated Press First Team All-American, First Team All-Big Ten and Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Not to mention an NCAA All-South Region First Team honor, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and the list goes on.
The addition to the USA Senior National Team may give Oden the opportunity to play for his future NBA head coach. Nate Mcmillan, head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, is an assistant on the USA coaching staff. Portland was declared the winners of the NBA Draft Lottery earning them the No. 1 pick with Oden considered to be a likely candidate for the top overall selection.
The rest of the coaching staff include coach Mike Krzyzewski of Duke University and assistants Jim Boeheim and Mike D’Antoni, coaches of Syracuse University and the Phoenix Suns, respectively.
Oden will be paired with a former Buckeye who created a few magical moments of his own in his days at OSU. Milwaukee Bucks standout and former NBA All-Star Michael Redd will vie for a roster spot when camp begins on July 20 in Las Vegas. Redd, a Columbus native, made an immediate impact at OSU where he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 1998, as Oden was last season. Redd ranks fifth on the OSU all-time scoring list with 1,879 career points.
OSU coach Thad Matta was excited that two former Buckeyes will be playing for the Senior National Team.
“We are thrilled that Michael and Greg have been chosen by USA Basketball as members of the Senior National Team,” Matta said. “Not only are they both terrific basketball players, but they are great people with impeccable character. I am confident they will represent the Ohio State community and our country in a first class manner.”
Mark Silverman can be reached at [email protected].
