Nice work by Shaun Powell over at NBA.com…
There are moments, and then there are Moments, the kind that tattoo themselves into your memory bank, making them hard to forget easily. The NBA had its share during the 2000s, certainly more that can be summed up in a few sentences.
Here’s a Top 10, confining the good and not-so-good moments to the on-court kind only that helped shape the decade.
10. Greg Oden out for the season, 2007 (and now, this one). When they drafted Greg Oden first overall in 2007, the Blazers had visions of another Bill Walton. Careful what you wish for. Oden quickly adopted Walton’s black cat and underwent microfracture surgery on his right knee. And then, just last week, he fractured his left patella. He doesn’t deserve this. Nobody does.
9. Cavaliers draft LeBron James, 2003. After a 17-win season, there wasn’t really much of a surprise what the Cavaliers would do with the first overall pick. Still, it was a major moment for the franchise, to be able to draft a local (well, Akron) and add instant buzz to a city long associated with professional sports heartbreak. LeBron made the Cavs good and Cleveland a destination. Imagine.
