Greg Oden returning to Ohio State men’s basketball coaching staff as graduate assistant
The last time he was at Ohio State, he got a taste of the coaching life. Now, Greg Oden is coming back for a bigger bite.
The former Buckeyes center and eventual No. 1 NBA draft pick will join Chris Holtmann’s staff this season as a graduate student with an eye on becoming a full-time coach. It’s a bigger role than the one Oden held previously at Ohio State, when he was a student manager and eventually student coach before earning his degree two years ago.
“I’m thankful, honestly, for Coach Holt and his staff who have welcomed me in and given me this opportunity because that’s literally what I want to do is get into coaching,” Oden said. “One of the toughest things to do is get your foot in the door, so for them to give me this opportunity while I’m able to actually get a Master’s degree in sports coaching from The Ohio State University, which I would love, is something that’s just amazing. I couldn’t ask for anything better. I’m just so thankful and ready to take advantage of this opportunity.”
He’s got plenty of experience at his disposal. The nation’s No. 1 recruit in the 2007 class, Oden helped lead Ohio State to its first appearance in the national championship game since 1960 while earning first-team All-American honors after averaging 15.7 points and 9.6 rebounds per game.
Portland then took him as the No.1 pick in the NBA draft, but injuries derailed his promising career. He was limited to two seasons with the Trail Blazers and played his final NBA season for Miami in 2013-14. In 105 career games, Oden averaged 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds.
This is the second time Oden has returned to Ohio State as part of the staff. After his playing career came to a close, Oden was working on his next step when former coach Thad Matta reached out and invited him to return to school. It helped Oden, who had been through some admittedly self-inflicted dark times, start to turn things around.
In 2016, 11 years after his lone season as a player began, Oden returned as a student manager for Matta. He spent the 2016-17 season in that role and reprised it the following year even after Matta was fired and Holtmann took over. Finally, after a year spent as a “student coach” in 2019, Oden achieved a goal he had set back in 2007: he earned his degree in sports industry from Ohio State. Ohio State’s degree completion program for former student-athletes helped him get there.