Former NBA player Greg Oden spent the 2013-14 season with the Miami Heat, getting a front-row seat to the superstar trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
And James, in particular, left an indelible mark on the former center.
“I still talk about this,” Oden said during an appearance on Johnny Manziel’s Glory Daze show with Almost Friday Media. “I saw LeBron James guard somebody with the ball in the left corner. They threw a pass at the top of the key and to the right corner and didn’t even hold it. Just a quick pass. LeBron James was right there when that ball got to that other corner and I was like, ‘This is the best player on the planet right now.’ And he’s actually playing defense like that. … I played in that game where he got like 63 points. That motherf–ker was a creative player. Like look, I am a Michael Jordan guy, I swear to god, but LeBron James on the Miami Heat is the greatest player to ever play the game of basketball.”
Oden also spoke about what it was like to play in a city like Miami, famous for its night life.
“Scary,” he said as Manziel laughed (26:54 mark]. “The number one thing I said when I got with the Miami Heat was, ‘Don’t get in trouble.’ Me and Michael Beasley, literally that was our thing. We would hang out probably five nights out of the week. Because we were like, ‘We can’t get in trouble in Miami. We’re on this team. We’re going to make it to the f–king finals. We’re going to get a ring. Just don’t f–k it up.” … I definitely tried to stay away from South Beach though because being on that team, it felt it meant a little bit more and I wasn’t going to be the one to mess that up, especially after two championships.”
Oden, 36, was the first overall selection in the 2007 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers, famously going one pick before Kevin Durant. But his career was marred by injuries and he ultimately only played in 105 career games, including 23 contests for Miami.
Despite being on his best behavior, Oden’s time with the Heat didn’t end with a ring—the Heat lost in five games to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, and that summer James returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Oden never played in another NBA game, but he certainly went out on a memorable note.
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