Greg Oden making progress in comeback effort, according to Deshaun Thomas

Free agent center Greg Oden is working out with 2013 NBA Draft prospect Deshaun Thomas, and apparently he looks amazing in workouts. Thomas provided a rave review on Oden’s progress.

by Steve von Horn

May 17, 2013, 6:46 PM UTC

Jonathan Daniel

Greg Oden hasn't played in the NBA since the 2009-10 season, but he's still working toward a comeback and may be making progress in his quest to return to the NBA. Oden, who is a free agent, has been helping Ohio State forward Deshaun Thomas prepare for the 2013 NBA Draft, and Thomas thinks the former No. 1 overall pick looks great on the court (via The Oregonian):

“Man, he looks unbelievable,” Thomas said. “He’s running, he’s lifting weights. You might be seeing a comeback. He looks like he is ready to go. He’s running, getting in shape. I’ll tell you one thing: For a big 7-footer, that’s all he does -- running and getting in shape. He’s looking right.”

There are more than a few qualifiers to this report, however. Thomas is not an NBA scout or talent evaluator, “running and getting in shape” is not playing in a full-contact game against NBA top competition and both players belong to an Ohio State basketball family that probably wants to help each member in any way possible. Thomas tossed out a lot of superlatives in his sound bite on Oden, and perhaps that’s the best thing he can do for a fellow Buckeye.

On the other hand, this isn't the first time we've heard about a possible comeback. Cleveland Cavaliers general manager Chris Grant acknowledged the team's interest in signing Oden to a new deal back in February. At that time it was rumored that the Cavaliers were preparing to offer Oden a two-year deal with a team option for a third year. Nothing substantive ever materialized from that report, but now the big man is back in the news and the normal free agency period is rapidly approaching.

If a team isn't willing or able to gamble big money of the oft-injured Andrew Bynum this summer, maybe they will take a chance and sign Oden to a smaller speculative deal. At the very least, it seems that Oden is still preparing himself for that type of opportunity.