Wade Returns. Doesn't Really Matter

Completing the NBA trio, Wednesday night Dwyane Wade returned . . . and the Miami Heat still lost. This was probably not the return he was hoping for, but now it's official: even with his help, the Heat are scraping the bottom basement of the league.

BUT, because every cloud has a silver lining, the Heat's loss gave Kevin Durant the Seattle Supersonics his its first win as a pro of the season.

Good. We killed two potential "news" stories with one stone. One, the story of Wade's return. Two, Durant's first win.

Tomorrow, when I'm not working until 1 a.m., I hope to tackle story #3 that I wish would die out: the Boston Celtics are the . . . I can't even say it. They're a good team, but they are SO overhyped, you'd think they drafted Larry Bird out of Indiana State again.

I guess this is better than Kobe-watch. Although, I did hear a comment during the Lakers game that Kobe Bryant was rumored to be coming to the Detroit Pistons, but the deal died. The Pistons? Detroit? Chicago - I might see him there. It was good enough for Michael Jordan, it's good enough for him. But Detroit? If you don't think the city he plays for has as much to do with any potential trade as the team that plays there, you are sadly mistaken. Big markets mean big money. If he leaves L.A. for Detroit, Kobe would be playing the best basketball of his life, because at that point, you know he is really getting desperate for a ring sans Shaq, and he's serious.

But I digress, because that won't happen. What will happen is that if the Heat don't start improving with Wade on the floor (and Pat Riley threatening to put his arthritic hip in the game over his current players), this has to be the last year of Shaq and Wade.

Get your tickets, people. I see a lot of shake-ups if this season is a bust for some of the more star-studded teams.

Sonic Bust: Oh and Seven

Kevin Durant may or may not be The Truth one day, but for now, he has yet to win an NBA game.

Durant and the Seattle Supersonics dropped to 0-7 after a loss to the Detroit Pistons. This is now their worst start in franchise history.

Well, buck up, Sonics fans. You got the #2 draft pick, and a pretty good player in rookie Jeff Green, but it looks like you're going to have to wait awhile for the boys to pay off in a good team. Plus, who knows how long you're going to be able to see Durant and Green if the Sonics owners get their wish.

The Sonics sucking can only build the case for taking the team to Oklahoma City, but if the owners lose their appeal and the team is forced to honor its lease, they better figure out how to make their Seattle season ticket holders happy for the next couple of years.

And an 0-7 start is not the way.

Durant Durant

Quick note on Kevin Durant's debut:

He may not have taken the best shots, and he was probably understandably nervous, but this kid is not afraid to take the shot, and confidence is everything in this league. He still scored 18 points in 31 points, 3-14 in the first half, 4-8 in the second, as the Seattle Supersonics dropped their opener against the Denver Nuggets, 120-103. ESPN's statisticians put in overtime again, finding that 18 points was the 4th most ever scored by a John R. Wooden Award winner (given to the top college player of the year, which he won) in an NBA debut. I'm sure J.J. Reddick has some NBA record, too, if you look hard enough.

The Nuggets look pretty good, Allen Iverson (25 points, 14 assists) and Carmelo Anthony (game high 32 points). I would love to see them make a run in the West, but they're one of the main no-defense teams out there. Still, here's hoping they work that out.

For the Sonics, Jeff Green only had 5 points in his NBA debut, but I think he'll pick it up. Hopefully the Sonics can figure out where they want to be so they can build on this young team.

But this Durant. He's going to be nice.

Update #1: Oden is "Oh, Done"

As an update to my previous post, and a crushing blow to the Portland Trailblazers, their star Greg Oden may be out for the entire season following his knee surgery. They're already comparing this to the debacle that was Sam Bowie, one of the most colossal draft disasters of all time (if you go to the link, note that I came up with "colossal" on my own, and the fact that it appears on this other site is pure coincidence . . . or an indication of just how bad it was). You see, in the 1984 draft, Bowie was selected second overall by the Portland Trailblazer - after Hakeem Olajuwon, who was taken first by the Houston Rockets, but before a player of "spotty" potential . . . none other than his Airness, Michael Jordan.

Now, if you're asking yourself, "Who the heck is Sam Bowie?" then you understand why it is now considered the worst draft decision of all time. Of course, hindsight is 20/20 and nobody knew Jordan was going to be as good as he was (especially after Zeke and the Detroit Pistons stuck it to him all those years, until he finally broke through). But while Jordan blossomed - an understatement, I know - Bowie had a career plagued with injuries, and he never amounted to the player that the Trailblazers thought they had.

Enter Greg Oden and Kevin Durant. Bill Simmons, a writer for Page 2 on ESPN.com, has always been pro-Durant. But Simmons says that if there was a tie between them, then the Trailblazers should have gone with Durant just based on their injury-risk. I tend to agree with him. Of course, now that Oden's out for a little while, I'm sure they're re-thinking their choice. Check out the Trailblazers' press conference - I know they wanted to cry. Especially when everyone starts calling to cancel their season tickets. And it can't help matters that if Durant stays healthy, he may well be one of the greatest of all-time.

I think it's too early to start calling the Oden pick "Bowie 2.0" but I do hope the youngster comes back and silences his critics. Yes, I called him a youngster.

At Least It's Not Hip Replacement: Oden Having Knee Surgery

You've all heard the "he's really 48" talk, so I'll spare you. I've seen him in person and something about him seems youthful even if he doesn't look the part.

If you haven't heard, Greg Oden, the #1 pick in the 2007 NBA Draft for the Portland Trailblazers, is going under the knife. Arthroscopic knee surgery before you ever play an NBA game, and after only one year of college, is not a good sign. But it's not like he has to jump too high, so hopefully they're doing these surgeries better than they used to. Or maybe the Blazers should have just taken Kevin Durant. Only time will tell.