Put the Oden in the Deep Freeze

If you spend your days reading about the NBA on the internet (and, since you're reading this, I'll assume you do), then you probably already know that Greg Oden will be out for the entire season. Obviously, this is a tragedy for even the most casual of hoops observers, who have really only seen Oden play one full game at complete strength (his extremely impressive NCAA Championship Game performance). What's pissing me off is that people were already talking Sam Bowie even before the news today, so expect to hear that one a million more times. What all these assholes are missing is that Bowie has nothing in common with Oden other than being tall and having once been injured. Bowie was never the explosive interior presence that Oden is, he was more like a Ralph Sampson type: a monstrously talented center who thought he was a small forward. Oden is more comparable to Amare: explosive, young, and knows where his bread is buttered. Wait, is that an actual expression? Anyway, the point is that, like with Amare, I expect a healthy Oden, and a Portland team bolstered by another high draft pick in 2008, to come out guns blazing in the 08-09 season. Bank on it.