C Greg Oden (Portland Trailblazers)

[Yertle]

SCOUT
RIVALS

Lawrence North High School (Indianapolis, IN)
Ht: 7-0
Wt: 245
PPG: 19.8 (Jr year)

Oden is ranked #1 in the 2006 class and #1 as a center by Rivals.com. He is widely considered the #1 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft. At this time, it is not clear wether he will jump to the NBA or go to college. For tOSU fans it is a very interesting situation, he is on the same team as Mike Conley, they have stated their desire to play on the same team in college and tOSU is at the top of both their lists along with Wake Forest. Scout.com lists tOSU as offering along with Indiana, Arkansas and Wake Forest. Rivals.com lists Indiana as offering.

He is listing Indiana, Michigan State, Arkansas, North Carolina, tOSU, Purdue and Wake Forest.

Profile Updated: 3/21/06

[smitty03]

I would have to say Greg will be jumping to the NBA after his senior year. If not here is some info on him.

Ht: 7-0 Wt: 240 PPG: 15.3
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD>Position: </TD><TD align=right>C </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD>Projected as: </TD><TD align=right>C </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>Position Rank: </TD><TD vAlign=top align=right>1</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>Class: </TD><TD vAlign=top align=right>2006 Senior</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><NOBR>AAU Team:</NOBR> </TD><TD vAlign=top align=right>Spiece Indy Heat</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><NOBR>High School:</NOBR> </TD><TD vAlign=top align=right>Lawrence North HS
(Indianapolis, IN)</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

Arkansas, Indiana, Wake Forest, and Ohio State are his listed favorites. He is teamates with PG Mike Conley, who also has interest in Ohio State

[goodguy]

A friend of mine emailed me some video clips of him in a game played this past week. He was being guarded by a 6'8" kid named McRoberts. If you want the clips let me know.

Mods PM me if you want to post these on the BP.

[BuckeyeTillIDie]

I wish Oden/Cook/Conley could all play for Ohio State right now..

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

SCOUT

36. Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) 13-2 (40)

The Wildcats bested rival Carmel, 53-49, in a game matching the state's

top two players. North's 7-foot junior Greg Oden scored 20 points,

collected 12 rebounds and blocked three shots. Carmel's 6-10 senior Josh

McRoberts had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

[wadc45]

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observe...s/10888814.htm

COMMENTARY


He's got game -- and patience


Indiana prep phenom Oden says NBA can wait

RICK BONNELL

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INDIANAPOLIS - Greg Oden doesn't just look 16-going-on-28, he acts 16-going-on-28.

Scratch that. I've seen some 28-year-old NBA players who could take a maturity lesson from this kid.

A 7-foot junior at Lawrence North High, Oden understands why reporters, pro scouts and elite college coaches drop by his games. He's just not swept up in the coronation, the way LeBron James was two years ago.

I caught a game of the "LeBron over America" tour in January of 2003, and it almost made me gag. He was talking down to people twice his age, cutting reporters off in mid-sentence and watching his mother curse out referees in a bizarre diva act.

There were reasons for most of that, with all the fuss in Ohio over what he drove and what he wore and who was supplying it all. James has grown into a poised leader with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The difference is Oden is still unspoiled; he's polite, spontaneous and friendly when national media whisk through his locker room.

Why do you get all this attention?

"I'm big," he replied jovially, quickly adding that he couldn't do anything if the guards weren't so proficient at passing him the ball.

And why haven't you tested yourself by scrimmaging with college or pro players?

"I'm scared," he confessed, saying that a recent matchup with Duke recruit Josh McRoberts is all the competition he can handle.

That's overly modest, if not naïve. Oden would have been a lottery pick in the 2004 draft and would be top 5 this June. Not eligible for either of those drafts, he might choose not to go pro in 2006, even if the new collective bargaining agreement leaves the minimum entrance age at 18.

Oden wants to go to college. He aspires to be an accounting major because "I'm good with numbers."

Here's the number that complicates his decision: Dwight Howard, another high school kid and the top pick last June, was guaranteed more than $11 million his first three seasons under the NBA's rookie wage scale. If he suffered a disabling injury, or simply flopped miserably, Howard would still get at least that much from the Orlando Magic.

"In his mind, he is going to college," said Oden's high school coach, Jack Keefer.

Clearly, top colleges haven't written off that possibility. North Carolina coach Roy Williams was at Oden's game Thursday, although the Tar Heels are also interested in Oden's teammate, junior guard Mike Conley.

Keefer cautions that it will be very hard for Oden not to turn pro at his first opportunity.

"Think of all the great high school players who went to college and just did OK. If he went to college and just did OK, that would be millions of dollars he'd never get," Keefer explained.

"As a kid, you don't think about that. But when people sit him down and talk about real life, it's going to be a tougher decision than he thinks it's going to be."

Oden says market forces won't force him into the working world early.

"I want to be ready for the NBA, if I make it there," he said. "If by next year I'm not ready, then college will be the thing."

Of course, being ready for the NBA isn't what it used to be. The draft is now so potential-driven that any team in the league would select him just to partake in what he might be.

He might be Patrick Ewing, maybe even Shaq. He's as tall and heavier than O'Neal was at the same age, and his skills are more refined (undoubtedly so at the foul line, where Oden has a soft, reliable stroke.)

His game Thursday against Ben Davis High was typical -- 26 points, 10-of-10 shooting, 10 rebounds and six blocks. If there's a flaw, it's Oden's demeanor -- he's too nice. Keefer once threatened to bench him if he didn't shoot more.

"I hate to take that away from him," Keefer says of Oden's good nature. "But I want to win."

They do win. And he's still nice. And soon enough, he'll be very rich.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

25. Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) 15-2 (30)

North ended the 13-game win streak of Bloomington South (17-2) despite 7-

foot junior Greg Oden playing only 17 minutes because of three first half

fouls. Oden scored 14 of his 16 points after intermission and ended with

seven rebounds for the defending state Class 4A champions.

Oden's team is rolling along....

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

SCOUT

2/28/05


Oden finished the regular season averaging 21 ppg, 10Rebs and 3 blocks per contest.

SCOUT

2/28/05

From the Wake site.....Oden averaged a double-double for the season and most believe he will go pro. The article makes mention of the NBA instituting a age limit of 20 and if that happens he will probably play along side his teammate Mike Conley in college.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK

3/6/05

lawrence north 60, arlington 45
Oden's 18 blocks rock No. 1 Knights
Wildcats avenge earlier loss behind their 7-foot sensation

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By Jeff Rabjohns
<SCRIPT ********************><!--document.write(''+'jeff.rabjohns'+'@'+'indystar.com'+'');//--></SCRIPT>jeff.rabjohns@indystar.com
March 5, 2005

In one of the most anticipated high school basketball games in years, Lawrence North got its revenge.
Junior center Greg Oden blocked 18 shots, and the Wildcats survived a frenetic and physical test to stop top-ranked and unbeaten Arlington 60-45 Friday night in a battle of state title contenders.

The Lawrence Central Class 4A sectional semifinal was a rematch of Arlington's 70-60 victory Dec. 17 that knocked defending state champion Lawrence North from its perch as the top-ranked team and helped vault the Knights into the No. 1 spot.

Arlington, bidding to become the first Indianapolis Public Schools team to win a state title since Broad Ripple in 1980, ended the season 23-1.

In tonight's final at 7:30, third-ranked Lawrence North (19-2) plays Cathedral (13-8). The Irish turned a 12-10 first-quarter deficit into a 74-49 rout of Tech in the first game.

Six hundred tickets are available for tonight's game, and they go on sale at 6:30 p.m.

Lawrence Central's 3,000-seat gymnasium was overflowing, with fans sitting in the aisles and standing in the four corners.

Oden finished with 12 points and seven rebounds to go with his 18 blocked shots. Junior guard Mike Conley had a team-high 16 points to lead Lawrence North, which went on a 16-0 run to turn a 35-32 deficit into a 48-35 lead with 4:15 to play.

Indiana University recruit Deonta Vaughn, a senior guard, scored 18 points to lead Arlington. The Knights shot 8-for-30 in the second half and went scoreless for nearly eight minutes from the middle of the third quarter to the middle of the fourth.

People began lining up at 2:15 p.m. Friday for the 600 remaining tickets that went on sale at 5 p.m. When the doors opened, approximately 500 people were lined up at the front entrance and another 500 at the rear entrance, leading to hundreds being turned away.

The crowd included Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser, Ohio State coach Thad Matta and North Carolina assistant Joe Holliday. All three schools are among those ardently pursuing Conley. Oden is expected to be among the top picks in the 2006 NBA draft.

Oden had 10 of his blocked shots in frenetic and physical first half that ended with the Wildcats up 32-25.

Call Star reporter Jeff Rabjohns at (317) 444-6183.

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Oden finished with 12 points and seven rebounds to go with his 18 blocked shots.

18 BLOCKED SHOTS!!! Thats unbelievable.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

RIVALS$

3/11/05

It was defending champ Lawrence North that prevailed over rival Indianapolis Pike, 54-46, two of the best programs in the state The game was the Indianapolis regional 4A's opening semifinal match-up.

Oden had 19 points, 10 Rebounds, 3 Assists and 3 Blocks.

SCOUT

3/12/05

<TABLE cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=0 width="98%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top bgColor=#ffffff>
New No. 15 Lawrence North is led by Greg Oden





15. Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) – (20-2) *NR
Lawrence North moves into the rankings after beating then-No. 3 Arlington, 60-45, in the Class 4A Sectional 10 semifinals. Wildcats junior center Greg Oden blocked an eye-popping 18 shots in the win and added 12 points and seven rebounds. Junior guard Mike Conley led Lawrence North with 16 points. The Wildcats went on to beat Cathedral, 39-30, in the sectional final behind 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks from Oden, who is rated the No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2006 by SchoolSports.com. Lawrence North will play Pike in the Pike Regional semifinals on March 12.


</TD><TD noWrap width=3></TD><TD vAlign=top>Champion Presents: Basketball Top 25
By Jon Mahoney
Date: Mar 7, 2005

Various state tournaments ravaged this week’s National Top 25, which saw five teams drop out of the rankings. Leading the way among teams entering the rankings is new No. 15 Lawrence North (Ind.), which enters the Top 25 after defeating former No. 3 Arlington (Ind.).
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[OHSportsFan9]

Oden and Lawrence North beat Pike today and North Central tonight to win their Regional. On to semi-state for them.

Oden and Conley played well. The teams were really packing it in on Oden, playing a good 5-6 ft off the perimeter players. But he still got his share of dunks in. In the Regional final against North Central he had 17 pts, and 8 rebs.

North Central is a top program here and they played well. They have a couple D-1 players to look out for. The state's leading scorer (26ppg) is 6'3" Sophmore Eric Gordon. I saw him for the first time today (2 games) and was real impressed. He has a smooth shot from the outside. He is built, real strong, and gets to the hoop well. Sorry to go off topic in Oden's thread, but I didn't see a thread for Gordon and he's mentioned interest in Ohio State (behind Illinois). Link- http://www.indystar.com/articles/6/228385-7996-036.html

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

RIVALS$

3/14/05

Lawrence North rode a swarming defense to repeat as Indianapolis Regional 4A champions with a 56-42 triumph over North Central. Oden had 17 points, 9 Rebounds and 5 Blocks in the win.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK$

3/14/05

The quest to repeat as Indiana 4A state champions became much closer to reality this past Saturday when Greg Oden, Jr. and Lawrence North disposed of cross-town rivals Pike and North Central at Hinkle Fieldhouse at the Indianapolis regional.





As far as his recruitment, he says he has not made a list and is concentrating on finishing the season.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK

Oden's team is ranked #8 by Scout.com....

8. Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) – (22-2) *15
Junior Greg Oden had 17 points and senior Tyler Morris added 12 points as Lawrence North defeated North Central, 56-42, in the Class 4A regional championship. The Wildcats take on Terre Haute South in the Class 4A semistate on Saturday.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Playing it safe -- at a price
With so much money at stake, elite high school athletes are starting to follow the college model of taking out personal-risk insurance. But is it worth it?

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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#cccccc><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=10 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#eeeeee>Related content

• Playing it safe -- at a price
• NCAA offers insurance program
• Oden update
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#cccccc><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=10 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#eeeeee>GAME OF HIS LIFE

This report is part of an occasional series on Lawrence North basketball star Greg Oden and the challenges facing today's elite young athletes. Previous stories:
• Nov. 14, 2004: Summer season has become an important proving ground
• August 1: Shoe companies use teens to drive $2.5-billion industry
• June 13: Oden expected to be top pick in 2006 NBA draft
• July 23: Picking college over NBA backfires

BETTER BE CAREFUL . . .

The official Lloyd's of London insurance form for athletes includes many "exclusions," in which the insurance company wouldn't have to pay on the policy. They include, in the company vernacular:

• Intentionally self-inflicted injuries.

• Suicide while sane; attempted suicide while sane or insane.

• Accident occurring while the insured is in, or on, or boarding or alighting from any aircraft a) in the capacity of pilot or crew member, flight instructor or student pilot; and b) being used for fire fighting, pipe or power line inspection, aerial photography or exploration.

• Commission of or attempt to commit a felonious crime which results in a conviction of the insured.

• The insured being under the influence of an intoxicant or any drugs or narcotics not legally available unless used as prescribed by a physician for a medical condition other than drug addiction.

• Riding or driving in any kind of motorized race.

• Participating in or practicing any occupation/sport, other than the stated occupation/sport, for pay in that occupation or as a member of a professional team or professional association or professional league.

• Death of the insured.

• As Act of Force or Violence, which involves the use, release or escape of pathogenic or poisonous biological or chemical materials or of nuclear materials, or which involves nuclear reaction or radiation or radioactive contamination. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

By Jeff Rabjohns
<SCRIPT ********************><!--document.write(''+'jeff.rabjohns'+'@'+'indystar.com'+'');//--></SCRIPT>jeff.rabjohns@indystar.com
February 1, 2005



Zoe Oden worries every time her son takes the basketball court.

She sees the pushes, the shoves, the undercuts, any of which could lead to an injury, potentially career-ending.

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=85 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
Greg Oden
</TD><TD width=10><SPACER type="block" width="10" height="1"></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

"There have been times when it's been several people beating on him," she said. "Someone said to me, 'I know you've got to ice him down when he gets home.'"

While health is a mom's main concern, there is an underlying -- and immense -- financial issue as well.

Should Greg Oden decide to skip college, it's widely projected Lawrence North's 7-foot junior center would be the top pick in the 2006 NBA draft. That would mean a guaranteed three-year contract worth about $15 million with an option for a fourth year that would push the value to the $20 million range. If he's drafted anywhere in the first round, he would receive a guaranteed three-year contract worth several million dollars.

If Oden is permanently injured in high school, those millions are gone for good. Unless . . .

Welcome to a burgeoning yet little-publicized frontier in big-time amateur sports: insurance.

The NCAA has been offering insurance to elite athletes for 15 years, but it was a little-used program until January 2003, when University of Miami football player Willis McGahee suffered a horrific knee injury in the national title game. After seeing such a bright future apparently felled with one blow (though McGahee eventually recovered), interest in the NCAA insurance program spiked; now about 150 athletes a year secure policies, the heavy majority in football and men's basketball.

And interest has seeped into high schools as well.

According to one of the nation's top experts in special-risk insurance, dozens of prep athletes look into policies each year, and a handful buy them -- mostly boys basketball players. As more and more high school basketball players jump straight to the pros -- a record eight were drafted in the first round in June -- the interest figures to increase.

"It's certainly becoming more common now with high school players entering the draft," said Michael Thompson, a special risks underwriter with American Specialty Underwriters International, one of a small number of companies that handles such policies.

"Kids are buying coverage to protect their first NBA contract."

The premiums for such policies range from $6,000 to $17,000 per million dollars of insurance, and the highest amount a prep player could get is about $5 million, insurance industry insiders say.

After that, much about personal-risk insurance remains murky. Employees at insurance companies speak only in generalities, pointing to confidentiality clauses that keep them from identifying clients. A handful of coaches of top prep basketball players around the country contacted either said they didn't know if their players had insurance or didn't want to discuss the topic.

It's unclear how old an athlete must be to acquire insurance. Zoe Oden said she's been looking into it since Greg was a freshman, but was told by Lawrence North administrators and coaches that policies were available only to high school seniors. Lawrence North athletic director Grant Nesbit said the school had preliminary discussions this summer with people in the insurance industry who indicated policies were available to prep seniors.

Jennifer McRoberts, mother of Carmel forward Josh McRoberts, a Duke recruit considered one of the top players in the senior class, said the family looked into getting insurance but was told it wasn't available to prep players.

Yet Thompson said select juniors could get policies, that it was more a question of potential talent than age. And LeBron James' agent said James (last year's NBA Rookie of the Year) had insurance as a high school junior.

How it's paid for also raises questions. The NCAA has a special program that provides loans to pay for premiums, but no such mechanism exists for high school athletes. Thompson said he knows of cases where banks have lent money to a prep player's family with the only collateral being future earnings. Blake Ress, head of the Indiana High School Athletic Association, said that could void a player's eligibility.

"The issue is in the form of who's paying and why," Ress said. "A family can do it, but I don't think outside entities can buy insurance. Otherwise, how is that any different from payment for future benefits, almost like signing a contract?"

One element that's clear: Interest is growing.

"For a million dollars in insurance, that's a wise investment," said Scott Grooms, a former Notre Dame quarterback who specializes in insuring athletes.

Said Ryan Blake, assistant director of scouting for the NBA: "If they can get it, why not?"

Others aren't so sure.

Lost opportunity

Western Kentucky's Chris Marcus is the poster child for a guaranteed NBA contract disappearing due to injury.

The 7-1, 285-pound center averaged 16.7 points and 12.1 rebounds his second season in college, 2000-01, and was projected by some as a top-five draft pick. Instead of leaving for the NBA, he decided to return to college, a decision lauded by many college basketball commentators.

But Marcus suffered a severe ankle injury five games into his junior season, tried to return, and later left school after it was determined more surgery was needed. He was never drafted and isn't currently on an NBA roster. He's been in and out of camp with the Denver Nuggets.

Marcus didn't have an insurance policy, but it isn't at all clear that he could have collected even if he did. The policies are generally for injuries that end a career, not ones that cause a player's draft status to drop. A blank policy from Lloyd's of London, which underwrites most of the special-risk insurance, states, "Total disability or totally disabled means solely and directly as a result of injury or sickness the insured is certified by a physician as being wholly and continuously prevented from engaging in the Occupation/Sport stated. . . ."

With so many medical advances, it's rare for an injury to be so severe that it prevents an athlete from ever playing again. As bad as McGahee's injury was, he's now playing with the Buffalo Bills; he slid down in the draft, which meant a smaller initial contract. If a player collected insurance, then returned to his sport, he would have to pay back the insurance collected.

Aaron Goodwin, James' agent, said he would not advise a prep star to take out a policy. Indeed, there is no record of a player collecting on a special-risk policy bought in high school. Only four college players have collected on their policies, all in football, Thompson said.

The highest payout on a policy involving a professional athlete is believed to be $36 million in the case of Baltimore Orioles outfielder Albert Belle.

"At 17, I can't think of an injury that would be career-ending," Goodwin said. "If LeBron tears a medial collateral ligament, it's not career-ending, so the policy isn't going to pay out. I think a lot of kids and families are being ripped off and end up paying $30,000 for a policy they don't need."

Thompson said insurance companies also view it as a risk, which is why no company actively markets personal-risk insurance.

"When you have that big of a claim," Thompson said, pointing to Belle's $36 million payout, "it's hard to produce premiums to make up that loss, even if you only have a few like that per year."

To insure or not

For his part, Oden said he's simply working on his skills, trying not to pay attention to off-court matters.

When the topic of insurance came up in a recent conversation, he grinned and shook his head as he sat on the bleachers at his high school.

"It's probably something I wouldn't know anything about. I'm just out there playing," he said, calling the rough play he faces something that "comes with the territory. I've got to play my game and get stronger. The stronger (opponents) get, the stronger I've got to get."

Oden's AAU coach, Mike Conley, has some knowledge of the process at the collegiate level. Conley said he bought insurance for his brother, Steven Conley, prior to Steven's senior season at Arkansas. Steven had a school-record 14 sacks and was a third-round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1996 as a linebacker.

"Going into the year you're picked to be drafted would be a good time to think about it," Conley said.

Lawrence North coach Jack Keefer said he's never heard of a high school player getting insurance. On the other hand, no Indiana high school basketball player has been drafted straight into the NBA.

"I think he'd be wise to get it," Nesbit said. "It's expensive, but certainly worth it when you're talking about the potential income that could be made."

Call Star reporter Jeff Rabjohns at (317) 444-6183.

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I think he would be smart to get insurance, he is projected as the number #1 pick in next years NBA draft.