By: Erin Moore for Body1Portland Trail Blazers’ Greg Oden was viewed as the next big thing, and many hoped he’d be the player to revive a lagging team. Selected as the number one pick in the 2007 draft, Oden left Ohio State University set on playing an exciting first season. Pain in recent weeks and a swollen knee after a run last week, however, prompted the team to order a magnetic resonance (MRI) test.
It was quickly determined that Oden needed knee microfracture surgery on his right knee, and he emerged from the operating room last Thursday. Recovery will most likely prevent him from playing this season. Although this procedure has been linked to the downfall of other players such as Chris Webber and Penny Hardaway, it is not always crippling. Doctors say he is young, the area of damage was small, and it was caused by a traumatic injury – not a degenerative condition.
Learn about knee microfracture surgery.
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