Durant = ???

[Sex Panther]

obviously

 

[Minstrel]

Oden, when healthy, averages 6 fouls/per 36. He's effective in his limited minutes, but playing just under half of a game and sending opponents to the FT line isn't ideal play from him, IMO. If you are arguing that Greg Oden's 21 games/24 minutes last season were more effective on the Blazers than Durant's 82 games of production, we disagree.

I don't think Oden was more valuable, no. Playing time is a pre-requisite for building value. I think his effectiveness for the minutes he played (which, I agree, were limited even when healthy by fouls) was superior to Durant's, once defense is factored in (not that Durant doesn't play defense, but he's not an impact-maker on defense while I feel Oden is).

I don't think 6 fouls per 36 will continue. Even if he remains "foul-prone," I think it will be at a much reduced level as he gets more experience. Further, he wasn't getting the 36 minutes that even that foul rate would have allowed, because he was having his minutes artificially reduced to "have him available" for specific parts of the game. If allowed to play til he fouls out, he'd average a lot more minutes.

So I think that Oden will play many more minutes when healthy. I think his production per minute will at least continue, if not improve as he gets older, when healthy. My sole concern about him is whether he will stay healthy.

 

[LittleAlex]

Durant is going to be an amazing player but he is never going to be as good as the media will build him up to be.

Honestly I don't think there is a player alive who would be.