Posted by kam77:
No wonder Oden couldn't complete the bench press
Me thinks you meant Kevin Durant.
AOLSPORTS:
Walk into the weight room of any high school with a decent sports program, and you'll see a few beefy offensive lineman/shot putter types who can bench press 315 pounds and a lot of tight end/power forward/catcher types who can bench press 225 pounds.
You'll also see a lot of skinny teenagers who can't bench press anything close to that. But most of those skinny teenagers aren't about to become superstar pro athletes.
Kevin Durant is about to become a superstar pro athlete, but he turned in a performance typical of a skinny teenager at the Orlando pre-draft camp. Jason Quick reports that Durant was the only prospect in Orlando who couldn't bench 185 pounds even once. That means at almost any gym in the country, the average accountant or lawyer or computer programmer who lifts weights a few times a week after work is stronger than the likely No. 2 pick in the NBA draft.
Combine Durant's poor showing with the phenomenal athleticism of Greg Oden, and it's easy to see why Oden is the clear choice of the NBA scouts even though Durant was the college Player of the Year. But Durant also has a ridiculous wingspan of just under 7-foot-5, which is Shawn Bradley territory. Guys with long arms always have more functional strength than bench press strength. Durant's meager bench press is more a curiosity than an indictment
JAMES DOLAN on Isiah : He's a good friend of mine and of the organization and I will continue to solicit his views. He will always have strong ties to me and the team.
6/5/2007 9:30 PM
