Hooped Up

After watching Greg Oden slam dunk his way through portions of a two-hour workout Monday at the Trail Blazers’ Tualatin training facility, General Manager Kevin Pritchard was left with a good feeling about his 7-foot center. “The thing we worried about was, would he have his explosion back?” Pritchard said of the No. 1 pick in the 2007 NBA draft, who missed last season after September microfracture surgery on his right knee. “I think the answer is yes, and (the knee) is coming back maybe stronger than it was before.” It’s far too early to tell that for sure. But Oden looked powerful, if nothing else, in the 20 minutes of Monday’s session with Portland assistant coach Dean Demopolous that was open to the media. Oden returned to Portland from Columbus, Ohio, last week and is beginning his second week of early conditioning with Demopolous. Oden has been joined by Blazer teammates Steve Blakeand Channing Frye, who have made Portland their off-season home. In two-on-two drills with 7-footer Steven Hill from Arkansas, Oden dunked often with two hands. At one point, he took a lob pass from Blake and rammed in a two-hander, celebrating as he bounded to the floor.

Portland Tribune