The list of top picks in the NBA Draft who became notorious busts is short and not sweet. It includes Anthony Bennett, Kwame Brown, Michael Olowakandi, and, unfortunately, Greg Oden . Picked first in the 2007 draft ahead of all-time great Kevin Durant, the 7-footer was expected to be the league's next great big man, especially after a dominant one-and-done season at Ohio State, where he averaged 15.7 points and 9.6 rebounds.
Oden's career, though, never took off because knee injuries kept him to just 105 games over three seasons. Looking back on his injury-riddled career, he shared the moment he realized he wouldn't be the player everyone thought he would become.
Although his NBA career never panned out, Oden hadn't given up on basketball and signed with the Jiangsu Dragons of the Chinese Basketball Association in August 2015. He recalled being in terrific shape and looking forward to a great season there. However, another injury derailed his plans.
"Going over there, I was very hopeful to have me a good season, um, and then get another opportunity to get on the team, and it just didn't happen like that. When I was over there, after our second preseason game, I broke my thumb, and I was out for a month and a half," Oden shared . "Basically broke my thumb on my right hand, and it was just like, again?"
"I'm in China getting my thumb healed with chi. It was a lot going on. And then I was never, um, back in that type of shape, 'cause I got in really good shape. But you know how hard it is to do that in season, especially, you know, when you really can't do nothing. You can't travel with the team, and it's my first time living over in China," he continued.
After everything he had gone through to still keep playing, that thumb injury was apparently the straw that broke the camel's back.
"That's when I started thinking about, you know, retirement, um, figuring out what was going to be next," Oden stressed.
The big man actually played well in China, averaging 13 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. But the fact that he just couldn't catch a break weighed heavily on his mind and heart, forcing him to reconsider his path.
"It's so many different things. Like, is it my body breaking down? Is it my opportunity? Is it really my mental? Do I want to get up every day and put myself through this?" he stated. "And that struggle back and forth to be looked at not that guy that, you know, I definitely thought I was or that I was told to be since I was 12 years old. You know, that's a lot. That weighs a lot on you, man."
Former NBA champion Channing Frye weighed in, saying he completely understood Oden's point of view. He used veteran big man Al Horford as an example, saying it must not be easy to play a diminished role on the Golden State Warriors, especially for a player of his pedigree.
"Think about, like, a guy like Al Horford, for instance, who's a two-time NCAA champion. He's an NBA champion. He's won everywhere he's at. Think about when he wakes up, he's like, 'What's my role?' Right? What do I do? I know I can still help a team, but my role on this team is really diminished," Frye remarked.
Everyone had high hopes for Oden, and they were right to expect greatness from the agile, athletic 7-footer. Unfortunately, fate had other plans, and Oden had to embrace the reality of his situation, not in the NBA, but in China.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Oct 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
