Here's audio of tonight's press conference for the Portland Trail Blazers discussing Greg Oden's season ending microfracture surgery. Posted by Ben Golliver. 

Greg Oden's latest microfracture surgery on his left knee is another in a long line of injuries, whether he is injury prone or not.
Posted by Matt Moore

With the news that Greg Oden is out for the year, it's time to take stock of the inordinate number of injuries the young man has unfortunately suffered during his basketball career. This is not in regards to further ellucidating his supposedly fragile state, but simply to give perspective to the unfathomable string of bad luck or unavoidable damage he has incurred, depending on which side of the "freak accident vs. fragile body" side of the aisle you happen to sway to. What follows are just some of the injuries Oden has suffered in his basketball life.

• In sixth grade, Oden underwent surgery to repair his hip . Following the surgery, one leg was then longer than the other, resulting in his unusual gait which is often misstaken for a limp.

• His senior year of high school, Oden underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his wrist , an injury that kept him out until December for his freshman year of college, after which he helped push his team to the NCAA Championship Game, only to fall short.

• On September 13th, 2007, during preseason before his rookie season, he underwent microfracture surgery to repair his right knee. He would miss the entire 2007-2008 season. 

• Oden managed to return from his first microfracture surgery only to have Andrew  Bynum land on his foot on October 28th, 2008, injuring it . He would miss only two weeks, though.

• Then on February 13th, 2009, he bumped knees with Corey Maggette and chipped his left patella . It was the first injury sustained to his left knee and he missed three weeks due to it.

• He recovered from that and 2009-2010 was set to be his year. He was looking very much like finally the player he was supposed to be. Then on December 5th, 2009, he landed without contact on his left leg, and badly fractured his left patella . His recovery was projected to take him right up until training camp of 2010.

• After missing training camp, preseason, and the start of the regular season , and after saying he wouldn't return until he was 100% healthy but that he could still be an impact player and that he was not a bust, it was announced on November 17th, 2010 that Oden would undergo microfracture surgery on his left knee and would miss the entire 2010-2011 season.

With the news coming from a Blazers press release that Greg Oden's season is done before it began as he is soon to have microfracture surgery on hs left leg, the Portland Trail Blazers have scheduled a 12 EST press conference to discuss the injury. Ben Golliver is live at the arena and we'll be updating relevant information to you as well as hopefully some media from the event. Check back here for more info. Here's audio of the presser via Ben Golliver. 

 

LIVE TWEETS FROM THE BLAZER PRESS CONFERENCE VIA BEN GOLLIVER

• 12:07 a.m. ET: Blazer president Larry Miller preemptively defends Portland's medical staff during his opening statement.

• 12:09 ET: Nate McMillan: "A young man that's devastated." Says situation was "shocking news" ... Says he told Oden "he has to stay positive." Says "Some things you just can't explain."

• 12:11 ET: McMillan backing his training staff: "We as society want to find someone to point the finger at... Sometimes things just happen."

• 12:13 ET: Trainer Jay Jensen with his voice getting emotional: "This is a really tough day for us... Greg doesnt deserve what's happened."

• 12:15 ET: Trainer Jay Jensen says Oden had normal exam just two weeks ago. But then knee was drained Tuesday. Swelled up multiple times this week.

• 12:18 ET: "Defect in articular surface" in Oden's left knee was then revealed by MRI. Jensen says it was like a "kick in the gut."

• 12:19 ET: Rich Cho on his medical staff: "I support them 100 percent."

• 12:22 ET: As for the articular cartilage issue, Oden has a "9 iron divot of grass" like hole in his cartilege, says Jensen.

• 12:23 ET: Jensen says it's in a totally different location than patella fracture but "certainly something in his workout in LA that triggered this." This injury is "very similar" to injury that led to microfracture in Oden's right knee, Jensen said.

• 12:26 ET: Jensen on whether Oden will come back from injury: "I believe in Greg Oden..." says Oden's work ethic "gives me hope."

• 12:28 ET: Jensen: "Greg is 22 years old... He has his whole life and basketball life ahead of him... I think he has a tremendous future ahead of him."

• 12:31 ET: McMillan: "I will address the team tomorrow... For us, it's part of the game... We're hurt for him ... "We have to pull together, stay together, we have a game tomorrow."

• 12:32: ET: Jensen on whether injuries cause him to reevaluate what he's doing: "Are you kidding me? ... Yeah, we ask ourselves all the time ... "There are a lot of things in medicine the aren't black and white. There are gray areas."

The Portland Trail Blazers announced that center Greg Oden will undergo microfracture on his left knee. Posted by Ben Golliver. 

The Portland Trail Blazers announced in a press release to the media Wednesday night that oft-injured center Greg Oden will undergo microfracture surgery on his left knee. The surgery will end Oden's 2010-2011 season before it began.

Portland Trail Blazers center Greg Oden will undergo microfracture surgery on his left knee Friday and will miss the remainder of the 2010-11 season, the Trail Blazers announced this evening.

Dr. Richard Steadman will perform the surgery with assistance from Trail Blazers orthopedic surgeon Dr. Don Roberts at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colo.   Oden, 22, has been sidelined since fracturing his left patella in a Dec. 5, 2009, game vs. Houston. A recent MRI showed damaged cartilage to the surface of his femur, and his current injury is unrelated to the fractured left patella.   Oden previously underwent microfracture surgery on his right knee Sept. 13, 2007.

Oden has played just 82 games over the course of his 3-year NBA career and he is set to become a restricted free agent at the end of this season after not receiving a contract extension this fall.  Oden was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft, and has been continually compared to No. 2 overall pick Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who has gone on to superstar status while Oden has struggled to stay healthy enough to reach the court.

For more on the history of Oden's injuries, check out our review here .

For more from Ben Golliver live at the Blazers' press conference, visit our livethread . 

The Portland Trail Blazers have informed the media that Portland Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy will not undergo surgery on his ailing left knee.  Posted by Ben Golliver. 

In a text message to Portland media sent Wednesday night, the Portland Trail Blazers said that an MRI of all star guard Brandon Roy's left knee conducted on Wednesday revealed that Roy does not need surgery. The message read, "No surgery is contemplated. He will miss the next two games vs. Denver and Utah and will be reevaluated in a week." The news comes as a huge relief for Blazers fans, who have the specter of a dreaded microfracture surgery hanging over Roy's season. Roy has been limited by the knee in recent weeks, injuring himself against the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday and sitting out against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Blazers play the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night and the Utah Jazz on Saturday night. Both games are at home. In Roy's absence, backup guard Wesley Matthews figures to get the starting nod, as he did against the Grizzlies, where he delivered a career-high 30 points in his first start of the season. Starting small forward Nicolas Batum and starting point guard Andre Miller, as well as reserve guard Rudy Fernandez, also figure to log heavy minutes against the Nuggets and Jazz, two of Portland's major division rivals.

The Lakers drop the Bucks, A Milwaukee fan gets revenge, Wesley Matthews goes off for a career-high, The Grizzlies melt down at home and the Toronto Raptors didn't do their coach any favors. Posted by Ben Golliver. 

Each game is made up of elements which help formulate the outcome. Monday through Friday, we'll bring you the elements from the night before's games in our own specialized version of the game recaps. It's not everything that happened, but it's an insight into what lead to the results you'll see in the box scores. This is the Game Changer. 

THE BIG ONE: REVENGE FOR BUCKS FANS, DESPITE THE LOSS

Who could forget the Los Angeles Lakers' trip to Milwaukee last year given the controversial calls down the stretch that enraged Bucks fans and the eventual Kobe Bryant dagger to win it? Tuesday night's rematch wasn't as drama-filled, but that doesn't mean Milwaukee didn't exact a measure of revenge. First: the numbers. Los Angeles won by slapping a whopping 118 points on Milwaukee, thanks to 31 points from Bryant and four other Lakers in double figures. Shannon Brown really got it going off the bench, connecting for four three-pointers on his way to 21 points. Andrew Bogut and Drew Gooden did their part for Milwaukee, combining for 34 points, 31 rebounds and five blocked shots, but the Lakers' perimeter attack was too much. The Lakers cruised to the victory thanks to 10-16 from deep; take out Bryant and the rest of the Lakers combined for 10-12 from downtown. Anyway, back to the revenge play for Milwaukee. Here's video of Kobe Bryant's overtime dagger, that only came about because of some suspect calls that went L.A.'s way. And here's Milwaukee's "we didn't forget" moment, as a fan came well-equipped this year with a sign that reads "Stern Loves L.A." that found its way onto Milwaukee's television broadcast. Sure, it's not as sweet a feeling as getting an upset win over the defending champs, but sometimes getting your point across feels just as satisfying.

GO-GO-GADGET LINES OF THE NIGHT:

Wesley Matthews:   A career-high 30 points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals, one block on 11-19 shooting, 5-10 from deep in 43 minutes in a Portland road win over Memphis.

Honorable mention to...

Josh Smith:  25 points, eight rebounds, two assists, one steal, SEVEN blocks on 9-16 shooting in 37 minutes in Atlanta's road win over Indiana. Landry Fields: 21 points, 17 rebounds, one assist, two steals on 10-15 shooting in 38 minutes in a New York road loss to Denver.

THE GRIZZLIES GO DOWN:

By Matt Moore

Here's the trick with the Grizzlies last night. To describe them as dysfunctional is to fail to give credit to how functional they were last season. Watching them slump out of timeouts, barely rotate to their man, and generally sleepwalk through another loss, this time to the Greg-Oden-less, Brandon-Roy-less, Joel-Przybilla-less Portland Trailblazers, it really hit you how far this team has fallen in a few months. Mike Conley took 14 shots last night, which is more than any other Grizzlies starter.

The Blazers were more than happy to oblige Conley with being the offensive weapon, as long as Marc Gasol and O.J. Mayo didn't get in the act. Meanwhile, as Wesley Matthews poured in shots from every single spot on the floor, Rudy Gay simply couldn't be bothered to commit to defending him, running off screens or getting a hand up. After all, he had to carry the load offensively with the rest of the team out of sync. Tony Allen was brought in to shut down the Blazers' backcourt but instead spent most of his time going ISO.

Meanwhile, Andre Miller calmly and coolly backed down Conley and nailed a turnaround in his face. Mayo looks as if he's simply going through the motions in the hopes of accelerating what seems like an inevitable trade process, and Zach Randolph is drowning in his minutes while Hasheem Thabeet can barely stay on the floor.

But other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

DON'T MISS:

 

• CBSSports.com's NBA power rankings .
• Allen Iverson makes his debut in Turkey.
• The Miami Heat ban a prominent anti-LeBron media voice from being credentialed.

ON Mike Bibby:

By Matt Moore

Mike Bibby's old. I mean old, old. It's time for him to move on, and yet, the old guy just keeps draining J's. Even as Bibby's pick and roll abilities on both sides of the ball erode into dust, his shot has become even more accurate. The Pacers for whatever reason saw fit to test that gunslinger's pistols and he wound up dropping 3 of 5 threes on them, including a trailing three pointer early which set the tone for the half. Bibby dropped 7 dimes tonight with zero turnovers, and yet will see nothing but scorn despite the win.

For being the most forgotten man in America, Bibby has certainly set himself up as a huge part of the Hawks' core. 

WHIMSY:

Grizzlies center Marc Gasol has a left hand that is bigger than his head, one that could quite possibly be the largest human hand ever. 

 

ONE FINAL THOUGHT:

The Toronto Raptors lost an ugly one, 109-94, to the Washington Wizards who were playing without rookie stud John Wall. After a defense-less 2-9 start that puts Toronto tied for the second-worst record in the league, calls for coach Jay Triano's job can't be too far away.
Follow F&R on Twitter at @CBSSportsNBA and check out our RSS feed . This has been your daily edition of the Game Changer.

Posted by Royce Young

• With Theo Ratliff out 4-6 weeks and Andrew Bynum on the shelf still, the Lakers might be in the market for a short-term backup: “We have to have some support there interim until Andrew comes back,” Coach Phil Jackson said Tuesday. The Lakers will talk to the representative for free-agent Erick Dampier , though it might not be a good match for either side. Dampier will want more than a short-term contract, and the Lakers are looking for a little more mobility in the post."

• Wilson Chandler wants to stay with the Knicks: "I'd love to be here," Chandler told FanHouse . "Just the city and just being close to the people in the organization. I just love being here. ... I think the future looks great (for the Knicks)."

• Statistically, Charlie Villanueva ain't all bad.

• Alan Hahn of Newsday: "Carmelo Anthony is making two franchises miserable right now. The Nuggets don't know whether their star will be back after this season and the Knicks are barely surviving without him. And before a lifeless crowd here at Pepsi Center, Anthony and the Nuggets barely held off the Knicks, 120-118, Tuesday night. The defeat extended the Knicks' losing streak to six games. Shooting was once again a major issue, especially from three-point range, where the Knicks were 9-for-31. It certainly wasn't a performance that would motivate Anthony to think he could be the missing piece to a championship team."

• The Onion on Greg Oden.

• Wes Matthews came up big for Portland.

• It'll be another week for Yao.

• Blazersedge: "Sean Marks played six minutes and hit a mid-range jumper. I look forward to the day, reportedly coming soon, that Joel Pryzbilla's name appears on this line in place of Marks'. Paging you video fiends: a highlight reel of Marks running in circles while playing defense in the halfcourt would be pretty re-watchable."

• By the Horns on a big performance by Derrick Rose: "Derrick Rose. Wow. When Rose got benched because of his fourth foul with 5:31 left in the third quarter, the Bulls were leading 60-58. By the time coach Tom Thibodeu subbed him back in to start the fourth, Chicago had fallen behind 71-63 and the Rockets seemed to have all the momentum on their side. Honestly, the Bulls couldn’t have looked any more discombobulated. Then Rose got ’em “combobulated” again."

• This is a big dunk.

• Brian Schmitz says Orlando should get Carmelo and Chauncey: "Word is that teams have inquired about point guard Chauncey Billups, and nobody on the planet can be surprised. If, or when, Carmelo Anthony goes in a trade, why keep Billups around? The Nuggets will be in official rebuilding mode once Melo walks. The Magic have pieces to land them both. Before the Heat land them by, oh, dealing Chris Bosh. I tweeted this weeks ago. Melo is making $17 million, Billups $13 mil this season. The Magic have a veteran package they can hand over to Denver: Shooting guard Vince Carter ($17 mill), center Marcin Gortat ($6 mill) and point guard Jameer Nelson ($7 mill)"

Posted by Royce Young

• Mark Cuban went on Dallas radio and of course said fun things about the Heat's slow start: "Hallelujah, boys, is that great or what? … How cool is that? Now, they could still turn it around and win out for all that matters, but you're starting to see some of the problems. Any team with a strong, big guy that can score, they're getting abused by. Paul Millsap goes out and pulls a Tracy McGrady. What, Tracy McGrady scored 13 and 30 and Paul Millsap scores 11 in 29 seconds or something like that? They just don't have size to battle. They have the fewest points in the paint of any team and that's tough. … My buddy Dan Gilbert is smiling all the way, too. Again, it's early in the season and you never quite know how it's going to play out, but how glorious."

• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: "So much has been so bad for the Oklahoma City Thunder that the last thing this team needed Monday night was a tough start. But the Thunder found itself in a nightmarish start when Utah point guard Deron Williams promptly splashed his first three 3-point attempts through the net, opening a nine-point lead less than three minutes into the game. And with the way OKC has underachieved all season defensively and sputtered at times offensively, there was little to suggest the Thunder could dig itself out of a hole in one of the NBA's toughest buildings. After securing a hard-fought 115-108 victory over the Jazz, however, the Thunder showed there is at least one characteristic from last year's lovable 50-win team that has indeed spilled over into this season of inconsistency. Pride."

• Did the Blazers look at Brandon Roy's knees before they maxed him out?

• Watch Duke senior Kyle Singler make basketball shots.

• Watch Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan do the same.

• Lisa Dillman of the Los Angeles Times: "The University of Clippers suffered a major blow to their NCAA chances on Monday night. (Well, there always is strength of schedule.) Kidding aside, when you present a starting lineup consisting of five players all still possessing NCAA eligibility, it's always going to hold an element of peril and high risk. The Clippers' starters were two 20-year-olds (Eric Bledsoe and Al-Farouq Aminu) two 21-year-olds (Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon) and one 'veteran,' 22-year-old DeAndre Jordan. So this team might look terrific in March in the NCAA tournament, but this is, for better or worse, the NBA in the opening month.

• The plus/minus 40 salvation scale.

• The NBA has rescinded a technical for Dwight Howard. Good thing, because he definitely needs that extra $2,000.

• Tayshaun Prince and John Kuester went after each other last night. Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News writes: "On the way to the bench, Kuester and Prince had words. Then Prince slammed his towel down, yelling at Kuester and walked away from the huddle. Kuester responded in kind, and had to be restrained by assistant coach Darrell Walker. Kuester and Prince continued jawing throughout the stoppage in play. After the timeout, Kuester attempted to walk over to Prince and continue their discussion, but Walker stepped in again."

• Watch Kwame Brown... flex?