Future NBA talent seen in Durant, Oden

by Brant Thurmond, staff writer

 

Kevin Durant, from the University of Texas and Greg Oden from Ohio State have caught the eye of many critics and scouts of the NBA.

So the question is, should Durant and Oden sign up for the NBA draft?

I do not think he should. Durant, a guard/forward, averaged 25.8 points and 11.1 rebounds a game during his freshman year. The Longhorns made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament and were in the championship game of the Big 12 tournament.

Durant could be something really big for the Longhorns and could help lead them to a Big 12 Championship and a decent run at a national championship in 2008.

His mobility, quickness, wing span, and leaping ability has the NBA looking at Durant for the NBA draft, which will be held on June 30. Defensively, he has all the physical tools to develop into an exceptional defender.

As far as weaknesses are concerned, Durant has proven to have trouble against double teams and can’t always read the double team quick enough. While he is unselfish, he lacks the passing ability to create an easy shot underneath the basket for his teammates.

So should Oden go to the NBA?

I really don’t care if he does or not. He is in Ohio. I could care less about him. Yeah, he is really good. But I don’t think he quite measures up to Durant. Oden averages only 15.4 points and 9.5 rebounds a game for the Buckeyes. I will give him a little bit of slack because of the fact that he led his team further in the NCAA tournament than Durant did at Texas.

If Durant and Oden did decide to go to the NBA, then I think it would be cool if they both ended up on the same team. If people would give them two to five years in the NBA on the same team, they could do wonders. I would like to see them both on the Dallas Mavericks some day, playing with Dirk Nowitzki and Jerry Stackhouse.