“And with the 2nd pick in the 1984 NBA Draft, the Portland Trailblazers select Sam Bowie, center University of Kentucky.” Even the most casual Blazers fan has probably been haunted by those words at some time over the past 26 years. Of course, the thirrd selection in that storied draft class went to the Chicago Bulls who drafted some guy out of North Carolina named Michael Jordan. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Well, the remake to that tragedy hit theaters in June of 2007 with Greg Oden cast in Bowie’s former role and Kevin Durant in Jordan’s. The circumstances surrounding the main characters are just a little different with Oden being the No. 1 overall pick and Durant being the No. 2, but the story and drama unfolding are pretty much the same.
Like a young MJ, Kevin Durant is an emerging superstar who is poised to lead his team and franchise to new heights. Oden on the other hand, is doing his best Sam Bowie impersonation with an already extensive history of injuries that threatens to derail a promising career. In three years as a pro, Oden has missed the equivalent of two full seasons having only played in 82 games.
About a thousand miles to the south of Portland, there is another big man struggling to overcome the ‘injury prone” label in his own right. Andrew Bynum came into the NBA in 2005 with just a fraction of the fanfare that surrounded Oden, but he quickly established himself as the next potential Laker great at center.
Bynum was having a breakout season in 2007-2008 – averaging 13 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks a game while helping the Lakers to a surprising 26-11 record and first place in the Pacific division before suffering a season-ending knee injury on January 13, 2008. Since then Bynum has shown periods of dominance, but two more knee injuries have kept his impact minimal when it mattered most – the playoffs.
Unfortunately, both Bynum and Oden will start the new NBA season in a familiar place – on the injured list. Separate knee surgeries will have Bynum out until at least December and Oden out indefinitely. This will mark the fourth straight season that both have missed significant playing time due to injury.
In this day and age of seven-foot three-point specialists, Oden vs. Bynum may represent the best hope of seeing traditional-style big men battle it out in the paint as they did back in the day. Surely, basketball purists longing for the days of Wilt vs. Russell, Kareem vs. Unseld or Robinson vs. Olajuwon are rooting for these two throw-back big men to someday overcome their brittle histories and bring old school order down low.
It may seem like forever that we’ve been discussing yet another injury to one or both of these guys, but at 22, Oden and Bynum have youth along with size on their side. The toll of multiple knee operations could ultimately steal any chance at greatness for the pair, but talented seven-footers typically have no problem remaining employed in the NBA.
Sam Bowie may forever be remembered as the guy who was drafted ahead of “his Airnes”, but he did manage to put together a pretty respectable 10 year NBA career between the laundry list of injuries.
Personally, I would love to see both guys shake the injury bug and realize their vast potential, but at the end of the day, being Bowie ain’t so bad either.
–Antwan Leonard
Antwan writes a Fantasy Sports Blog – H2H Fantasy Sports – with the latest in Head-to-Head Fantasy news, tips and recommendations.
