LaRue Martin Feels Greg Oden's Pain

CHICAGO -- A center is taken No. 1 in the NBA Draft by Portland and is eventually labeled a bust while the No. 2 pick becomes a scoring champion.

Sounds like the story of Greg Oden, drafted in 2007. But it's also the tale of LaRue Martin, the first Trail Blazers' No. 1 pick in 1972.

There's one major difference between the two situations. Oden, 23, has been unable to fulfill his potential due to a rash of knee injuries while Martin simply couldn't make it in the NBA, being waived out of the league after four seasons.

But there are enough similarities that Martin, now based in Chicago as community services manager for the UPS Illinois district, would love to offer advice to Oden.

Martin's career crashed while 1972 No. 2 pick Bob McAdoo went on to win three scoring titles with Buffalo. The 2007 No. 2 pick, Kevin Durant, won the scoring crown last season with Oklahoma City.

"I'd like to sit down and talk to him and see what's on his mind,'' Martin said about Oden. "I'd reach out to him if (the Trail Blazers) wanted me to.''

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So what would Martin tell Oden, who will miss all of this season due to a left knee injury, meaning he will have played in 82 of a possible 328 games in his first four NBA seasons?

"Just keep the faith and don't look back,'' Martin said. "He might think he's let down the public and the Portland Trail Blazers. But stay focused on your recovery and look forward.''

The more Durant, who seems bound for a second straight scoring title, stars, the more the Trail Blazers hear about how they should have taken the forward with the top pick in 2007. It was the same for Martin when McAdoo went No. 2 and went on to make the Hall of Fame.

"People are going to bring up things like that,'' McAdoo, now a Miami assistant, said of the extra burden on Martin and Oden due to the No. 2 picks in those drafts excelling. "(The draft is) not an exact science.''

Still, Oden is hearing the dreaded B word.

"Right now, he's being labeled, but he's still a young man,'' Martin said. "I'd say, 'Just try to get that off your mind. Just be quiet about it.' As soon as you go back, they're (the media) going to eat you alive. If he was in New York, you know how New York is, it's tough back there.

"Thank God he's in Portland. They've got a different kind of people out there. Very nice to me. They have a lot of sympathy for a person. Sometimes their patience wears out a little bit. But they're good people overall out there. ... But inside he's hurting pretty bad. He's at home crying sometimes. I did it.''

Martin hopes Oden can get back and have a successful NBA career. But he also said Oden must be realistic about the rest of his life.

"He has to listen to what the doctors have to say to get his body back in order and back in shape,'' Martin said of Oden, who left Ohio State after his freshman year. "Or, if he can't take it anymore, give it up. (If he can't play any more), he needs to get his degree. ... Take care of his money and look for another career.''

Obviously, there's a huge difference in the money situation. Even if he never plays another game, Oden will gross over $21 million in the NBA, more than 20 times what Martin earned.

But one can't complain about what Martin, who played four years at Chicago's Loyola University, did after returning to college on his own expense to earn a degree in sociology. He's become a highly respected UPS manager.