Oden close to coming back

Orlando, Fla. - Greg Oden's return is growing near.
It probably won't come Wednesday night in Miami, but odds are good that he'll be back at some point during the Blazers' five-game road trip that began on a prosperous note with a 106-99 win against the Magic. The win was Portland's first road success in four tries.
Oden continues to make progress after returning to the court on Sunday when he participated in some light contact work at the Magic's training facility in Maitland.
I briefly caught up with him on his way out of the visiting locker room at Amway Arena. Although he's encouraged and eager to get back, he remains adamant about not rushing. Given what he's been through just trying to get on the court since being selected No. 1, it's understandable that he'd fear doing anything to further tempt fate.
"Right now, I'm still rehabbing. Just trying to get my foot back, but it feels good," said Oden, who
is traveling with the team through their five-game road trip whether he plays or not. "I'm going to start doing a lot more and we'll see what happens. It's getting better. I think things are going smoothly with the recovery."
The "a lot more" begins Tuesday in South Florida, but given that there's no way to predict how his foot will react to an increased workload from one day to the next, I'd expect the organization to choose to err on the side of caution. It's also unlikely that he'd play both ends of a back-to-back, so while it's possible we'll see him return against New Orleans on Friday, he could also be held back until Saturday's visit to Minnesota.
Oden was running with the second unit during Sunday's stint, which looms a sign that he'll be eased back in off the bench this time around. Nobody came out and said that, but that's the feeling I got.
"When Greg comes back, I don't know if he's going to start or come off the bench," Brandon Roy told PBN, "but he's going to come back and earn everything he gets and I think that's the proper approach."
Look for more on that eyebrow-raising quote Wednesday at ProBasketballNews.com, where we'll look ahead to part II of the Oden experience and his effect on the Blazers, particularly Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland's other young pillars.

Monday's +/- report: Paul Pierce (+8, 36 points, nine rebounds) and Ray Allen (+15, 19 points) made the key baskets down the stretch, but Kevin Garnett's presence was most effective, registering a +26 in 35 minutes, most of which were spent helping to frustrate Chris Bosh (-, 9 points on 3-for-8 shooting)... Danny Granger (+17, 20 points, seven rebounds) continued to be a beast against Oklahoma City, getting help from T.J. Ford (+16, 24 points, 10 assists), who had his best game as a Pacer to help overcome Kevin Durant's 37 points... LaMarcus Aldridge (+17, 16 points, 11 rebounds) had to draw Dwight Howard (-3, 29 points, 19 rebounds) for most of the game after Joel Przybilla (-2 in 9:30) got in early foul trouble and did very nice work. Offensively, he was instrumental in the success of Nate McMillan's small lineup, consistently supplying a threat on the pick-and-pop... Dwyane Wade (+5, 33 points, five assists) recovered from a slow start to score 14 points during a key 17-5 Miami fourth-quarter run that erased an 85-76 deficit, turning the game over to Chris Quinn (+17, 9 points) to seal at the free throw line. Miami won, 99-94, despite the absence of Shawn Marion, who was told to rest a groin injury. His minutes were split between Yakhouba Diawara (-9, 1-for-4) and Daequan Cook (+9. 15 points)... O.J. Mayo (-3, 33 points) missed a late game-tying 3-pointer in a 107-102 loss to Phoenix, but has become the Rookie of the Year favorite given his play of late.