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Overview

Oden played one season of college basketball but left his imprint in the Buckeyes' program.

He became the 15th Ohio State player to earn All-American honors and the 10th to earn the nod from the Associated Press. He was the first Buckeye since Jim Jackson in 1992 to make the Associated Press first-team. The last OSU center to accomplish the feat was Gary Bradds in 1964.

In addition to the AP honor, Oden was named the Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year, the league's Defensive Player of the Year and was a first-team All-Big Ten selection by both the conference coaches and media.

Oden had surgery on his right wrist June 16, 2006, in Indianapolis to repair ligament damage suffered late in his High School career. In the 32 games after returning from a right wrist injury that kept him out of Ohio State's first seven games of the season, he set the Buckeyes' freshman record for blocks (105) and is second all-time among Ohio State rookies in rebounding (9.6 per game) and field-goal percentage (.616; 184 of 307). He led the Big Ten Conference during the 2006-07 season in rebounds, field-goal percentage, blocked shots, offensive rebounds per game (3.53) and defensive rebounds per game (6.03).

At Lawrence North High School, Oden was widely considered the best prep basketball player in the United States. He was named Parade prep co-player of the year in 2005 (along with Monta Ellis), the first junior since LeBron James to do so. He was selected the 2005 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year and was rewarded with the same awards the following year.

During the 2005-06 season, Oden led Lawrence North to an undefeated record, a third- straight Class 4A Indiana state championship and the first ever No. 1 ranking in USA Today's Super 25 rankings. For the season, the center averaged 22 points and 10.5 rebounds per game while shooting 74 percent from the field.

Oden dominated in the state championship game against Muncie Central, scoring a game-high 26 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Lawrence North won their last three state championship games by a combined 56 points and their average margin of victory during the regular season was 21 points. Oden was also on the McDonald's All-American Team and played in the All-American game.

In 2006, Oden was added to the roster for the USA Men's National Basketball Team, replacing J.J. Redick. He has already been invited to participate on the 2008 USA Olympic Basketball team.

Scouting Report

Positives: Well-built athlete with long limbs and room on his 7-foot frame to carry at least another 20 pounds of bulk with no loss in quickness, speed or explosiveness...Because of his great length, excellent reach and athleticism, he has dominated as a rebounder and shot blocker and looks very comfortable operating under the boards...Runs the floor in transition on the offensive and defensive end of the floor, possessing excellent stamina to run the court and shows dominance on the defensive end...Very active attacking the glass for missed shots, as his physical strength under the boards and ability to time his leaps allow him to excel at blocking shots and hauling in rebounds on both ends of the floor...Led the team in rebounds in 25 games...Has large, natural hands to deflect shots and get to the ball at its high point...Does a fine job of working the lane and shows good ball security in attempts to keep the ball high and away from the opponent...Demonstrates the quick feet needed to make rotations in defensive assignments and shows the offensive tools to be efficient as a post player...When working in the low block, he can connect with his turnaround jumper off either side and is also good at utilizing fade-away jumpers...Knows how to use his body to frame out and give passers a better target...Has the body control to get to the out-of-position rebounds and uses his body well to attack and react to double-team action...Shows good confidence in using his body to box out his man and is perfectly capable of converting several moves on the low block...When he doesn't power his way to the basket for a layup or dunk, he demonstrates the crisp footwork and touch to execute the soft shots needed to dominate the game offensively...Has improved his face-up game off the lane and can adequately hit the 15-footer...Has developed into a game-changing shot blocker...His soft touch from the inside is countered by his developing jumper, as he also runs the court with ease and shows impressive fluid moves attacking the rim...Has shown improvement with his jump hook and sweeping hook to the middle...Finishes well around the lane and times his leaps well, excelling on the dunk or putback shot...Has the lateral quickness to defend on the perimeter and is a smart player who won't be drawn out of position...Is natural in the open court, especially for a player of his size, drawing comparisons to Tim Duncan in that area...Knows how to use his body to box out and has become quite an efficient passer, especially on outlet passes...Has strong hands and rarely has the ball stolen (three in 2006-07)...Has a soft touch under the basket, but once his right hand healed, he relied more on his turnaround hook shot during the later stages of '06-07...Plays with very good court vision, evident by his 21 assists and 18 steals as a freshman...Knows how to use his frame to gain position and shows good assertiveness attacking the rims...Plays with a team-first attitude and keeps his composure in pressure situations...Takes well to hard coaching...Body is still developing and growing.

Negatives: Needs to improve his free-throw shooting, but because of his early season right wrist injury, he was forced to shoot left-handed for a good portion of the season...Is a solid ball distributor, but he also needs to take the ball to the rim more with stronger power moves and finish...Plays with a good tempo, but even though he dominated on the boards, his overall game lacks aggression...Will sometimes back away from more physical opponents and needs to finish after initial contact...Has to use his lower-body strength better to handle digs and bumping in the post...Works hard to post up vs. more physical centers, but sometimes fails to get into the lane with the back-down dribble...There are still some range-of-movement restrictions in his injured right wrist...Perhaps too team-oriented, as he looks to pass more often than he should, even when he has a clean shot...Struggles some to play with his back toward the basket and still is a work in progress with his post moves...Footwork tends to get sloppy...Needs to be more creative on offense, but his defensive game has no flaws...He gets a little out of rhythm with his shooting range when facing the basket...Lacks the mid-range shot to force his opponents to come out of the lane to defend him.

Compares To: TIM DUNCAN, San Antonio. Oden is a quiet giant on the court and needs to play with more aggression, but you can see that he has the natural gifts to be a star at the next level. His offensive game has yet to catch up to his defensive skills. Oden is more team-oriented than most quality stars and is perfectly content with boxing out an opponent, grabbing the offensive rebound or feeding scorers. If he becomes more assertive with age and experience, he'll be a well-rounded all-star in the NBA.

High School

Attended Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) High School, playing basketball for head coach Jack Keefer...Led the team to three straight state titles and 45 consecutive wins...Named Parade Magazine's High School Co-Player of the Year 2005 and 2005 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year, becoming the first junior since LeBron James to be given that honor...Oden gave a repeat performance and was rewarded with the same awards the following year...Associated Press first-team All-Indiana (2004-06), Parade first- team All-American and USA Today All-USA first-team (2005-06)...Gatorade Indiana Player of the Year (2005-06), National Player of the Year (2005-06), National High School Male Athlete of the Year (2006) and National High School Male Athlete of the Year Finalist (2005)...National High School Coaches Association Player of the Year (2006)...McDonald's All-American (2006) and winner of the Morgan Wootten Award (2006 McDonald's All-American Player of the Year)...Indiana Class 4A Indiana State Champion (2004, '05, '06)...Helped Lawrence North earn the nation's top-ranked team (29-0) in 2006, USA Today and Sports Illustrated...Was the nation's top-ranked player by SI.com, 2006...Named Indiana 2006 Mr. Basketball by the Indianapolis Star...Helped the Schooltie an Indiana state record with 45-consecutive wins, 2005-2006 and tie another state mark with three consecutive state championships (2004-06)...Roundball Classic West Co-MVP...As a senior, Oden scored 22 points and grabbed 10.5 rebounds per game while shooting 74 percent from the field...Dominated in the state championship game against Muncie Central, scoring a game-high 26 points and grabbing 11 rebounds...Lawrence North won their last three state championship games by a combined 56 points and their average margin of victory during the regular season was 21 points...Connected on 248 of 337 (.736) of his field goals and 123 of 157 foul shots (.783)...Finished with 91.5 percent of the votes (177.5 of 194 votes) in Indiana's 2006 Mr. Basketball voting to claim the award. Oden is second to Damon Bailey (1990), who had 95.3 percent of the votes since records were first released in 1988. No other winner (since 1939) has ever earned more than 70 percent of the votes...The fourth (and second to play at Ohio State) two-time High School national player of the year since 1955, Oden matched LeBron James in 2002-03, Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) in 1964-65 and Jerry Lucas in 1957-58 (lettered at Ohio State from 1960-62)...Earned the 2005-06 Indiana Class 4A Arthur L. Trester Mental Attitude Award as selected by members of the IHSAA Board of Directors. The recipient, nominated by Schoolprincipals and coaches, must excel in mental attitude, scholarly, leadership, and athletic ability on the court. The award is named in honor of Trester, the IHSAA's first commissioner who served from 1929-44...Selected the Atlanta Tipoff Club 2006 Naismith Prep Player of the Year, awarded annually since 1987 to the best High School player in the nation. He joins Damon Bailey (1990) as the only Indiana honorees...As a junior, he help the team capture the 2004 TOC title and was named MVP...Was the top player at the 2003 Nike Hoop Jamboree...Finished his career with 1,873 points, 1,058 rebounds and 341 blocked shots...Never lost a conference game. He never lost at home.

Personal

Business Administration major...Son of Zoe Oden and Greg Oden, Sr....Brother, Anthony, is a junior at Lawrence North High School...Born 1/22/88...Resides in Indianapolis, Indiana.

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