Where does Greg Oden stand?

“He’s continuing his rehab. I saw his rehab at the rehab place he’s at. After that he worked out on the court for a couple of hours. He’s progressing along fine. He’s not ready to play in a game right now. He’s working very hard. We’re pleased with his progress. He’s going to be fine.”

So he’ll be ready for opening night?

“I didn’t say that. We’re pleased with his progress and I don’t know whether he’ll be ready to play opening night or not. It just depends on how it’s coming. But we’re pleased with his progress and he’s working really, really hard.”

I guess it’s getting to that time where we have to start talking about Greg Oden. For one, it’s good to hear that Cho went out to visit Oden in an attempt to build a relationship with him. Also it’s nice to hear that he’s on schedule and progressing instead of taking steps backwards. My thoughts on Oden are simple: don’t rush it. It may be a contract year for him, but there’s no reason to rush him back on the court. The funny thing–and it’s a whole post on it’s own–is what can you realistically expect from Greg Oden? There’s no denying that in an odd way he’s the X-Factor for this Blazer team this season. They have proven they can win without him, however he’s shown flashes of brilliance and we could all agree this is a better team when he’s performing well. For pete’s sake, as much as I don’t like to put a ton of stock into Hollinger’s stats, he’s got Oden’s PER at 23.14–up there with elite company such as Tim Duncan and Dwight Howard. The skills are there, will the health be?

And I know the world is dying for another update on Rudy Fernandez, here’s a little on what Cho had to say on the disgruntled guard.

Are you still looking into trades for Rudy Fernandez?

“I’ve talked to a lot of teams. I don’t want to get into specific trade talks. The whole Rudy issue is out there so I will speak to it a little bit. I have been active in talking to a lot of teams.”

Would you consider releasing Rudy Fernandez’s rights?

“We won’t release his rights.”

Not even an option?

“No, that’s not an option right now.”

I don’t think there’s anything groundbreaking in what Cho said. He’s proven that he’s not just going to give Rudy up in a deal, simply to make a deal. I think that’s the right way to pursue this because at the end of the day, he’s either going to come back and help this team or he’s going to sit around and do nothing and lose money. Releasing Rudy would just be foolish, especially when you’ve tried so hard to get a good deal for him in a tough market. Like Cho’s thinking on this one.