Greg Oden will be taking his talents to South Beach.
The oft-injured center has decided that the Miami Heat are the best fit for his comeback bid and, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the former top-overall pick will sign a two-year deal with the team. The Heat apparently hedged their bets as the deal is worth the veteran’s minimum, but gives Oden the option to opt out next summer if he’s healthy enough to garner a bigger deal.
It was seemingly wise for the Heat to take on such a low risk considering Oden hasn’t played in the NBA since 2009 and has undergone multiple surgeries on both of his knees. If he proves to be healthy, they’ll be getting a steal of the center. If he doesn’t, they’re only out the $1,027,000 veteran’s minimum that he’ll make this season.
Oden will report to Miami on Monday to sign the two-year deal, thereby officially joining the reigning NBA champions and a team that also includes fellow former No. 1 overall pick LeBron James. The 7-foot center will have plenty of other talented players surrounding him as well, as he’ll have the option to work his way into a big man lineup that also includes James, Chris Bosh, Chris Andersen and Udonis Haslem, among others.
It was expected that Oden was going to sign with the Heat for quite awhile considering he’s a natural fit as a true big man and could thrive with the rest of their lineup, but some speculated that pressure might get to him considering the scrutiny Miami has been under since the Big Three joined forces. That apparently wasn’t a problem for the big man, however, and now he’ll attempt to show the world that he’s healthy enough for Miami to have a Big Four -- or at least a big 5, as in the center position -- instead of just the Big Three.
