[OSUBasketballJunkie]

IndyStar

4/7/06

the star's super team player of the year

Oden's work ethic helps his free throws

Thump, thump . . . swish.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

There have been glossy photo spreads. National television cameras. ESPN.
Sports Illustrated. Newspapers across the country. They capture the explosive dunks and spectacular blocks. The tens of millions of dollars swirling just out of reach. Greg Oden is the most glamorous high school basketball player in the country.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

But it is a recurring scene in a nearly empty, pre-dawn Lawrence North High School gymnasium -- each dribble echoing off the walls and sweat pouring off his body as he performs the most monotonous and quintessentially Indiana basketball maneuver -- that perhaps best captures this national phenomenon.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

Oden would arrive at school at 6:30 a.m. four days a week and, after completing a routine of post moves and jump shots with assistant coach Ralph Scott, he would shoot free throws. He had to make 80 percent of 50 attempts before he could leave the gym, and then he shot at least 50 more at the end of the team's afternoon practice.

The player who missed all nine of his free throws in an eight-point loss to Pike in a regional game as a freshman -- the program's only postseason loss during Oden's career -- hit 78.3 percent from the line this season as a senior. Along with his supreme talent, it was the work ethic behind that improvement that made the 7-footer the choice as The Indianapolis Star's Super Team Player of the Year in a vote of area coaches.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

"I looked at it the day after the (loss to Pike) as, 'We lost by eight and I missed nine free throws,' " said Oden, who shot 43.9 percent from the line as a freshman. "It was a motivator. Every year we played at Hinkle (Fieldhouse) after that, my teammates would never let it down. I wanted to get better and improve so it wouldn't happen again."

He hit 64.0 percent as a sophomore and 63.7 as a junior before focusing even more on his form this season. Oden's primary mechanical correction was to put his right foot slightly in front of his left because he leaned to the side when his feet were lined up. He would take two or three dribbles with a couple of mini-steps to reset his left foot on each shot, and he stepped off the line if he missed to refocus.

Scott chose 80 percent as a goal because he noticed Yao Ming, the Houston Rockets' 7-5 center, was at 79 percent. Oden said he could count on one hand the number of times he didn't hit 80 percent on his first 50 attempts during practice. His 78.3 percent on the season was better than all but five current NBA centers through Wednesday.

"I told him, 'Greg, you're going to get fouled a lot. You have got to be able to do this,' " Scott said. "A lot of it's mental, getting it in his mind that big men can shoot free throws. Teams were fouling him early in the season, but word got around and they backed off a bit."

Oden peaked at 81.7 percent late in the season after making 11-of-13 free throws in a 74-67 victory over Pike on Feb. 21. But a wrist injury contributed to the center hitting just 25 of his 37 attempts over the final eight games to dip below the 80 percent target.

"I told Greg (early in his career), 'This is what I see (you can improve on), but it's not going to happen overnight. You're going to have to develop it,' " Scott said. "He's so humble. He won't say he's good at doing this or that.

He knew he had to get better at every point. It's his driving force. We've had a lot of great kids, but his work ethic and passion to get better and work hard (surpass them all)."

Thump, thump . . . swish.

Thump, thump . . . swish.

Thump, thump . . . swish.