Greg Oden's Worst Enemy

Mortality hurts. The hits keep coming for Greg Oden. First it was the knee. Then it was the foot. Now doubters have dubbed him the next Bill Walton , which will only be true to the extent that it’s unfair. Youth is a state of mind. Health, on the other hand, begins and ends with the stuff of the body. Don’t confuse this for an elegy. Oden still has plenty of upside, and the Blazers seem to be in it for the long run. But there’s a reason your insurance agent collects medical histories. If the last two years are any indication, the next decade promises plenty of pain for the Portland faithful. Toughness can’t be taught. Worse, wellness can’t be willed. Even with all the drive in the world, you can’t expect to get very far on a bad set of wheels. We sports fans want our heroes to be invincible. It’s a sort of escapism, I think, a salve for the strains and sprains of our own Earthly toil. The catch, alas, is that life is no kinder to Lottery picks than ... (link)