
Video
Greg Oden breaks silence on Bust label, KD, what ifs, addiction & life after basketball| The Pivot
General Sports
Person context
Open athlete profiles or related sport coverage without starting a new search.
Pivot Family! hit the button to .youtube.com/channel/UCUnxiP7q4RDDyeioZFZLnXA?sub_confirmation=1
"My story isn't a basketball story, it's a life story." Greg Oden
On this episode of The Pivot Podcast, we sit down with former No. 1 overall NBA Draft pick Greg Oden for one of the most honest and powerful conversations of his life.
For years, Greg Oden's name has been tied to one word: "bust." Drafted ahead of future MVP and NBA champion Kevin Durant in 2007, Oden became the subject of endless debates about what could have been. But as Durant himself has said, Greg was never truly given a chance—his career was derailed by injuries before the basketball world ever got to see what he could become.
In this raw and revealing conversation, Greg reflects on the pressure of being the No. 1 pick, the weight of expectations, and the frustration of seeing his legacy defined by circumstances beyond his control. From his rise as a high school phenom and Ohio State star to the devastating injuries that robbed him of years on the court, Greg shares the emotional and physical battles that shaped his journey. Parts of this conversation bare all as Greg's transparency truly brings his pain and passion to the forefront.
He opens up about his time with the Portland Trail Blazers, the criticism and scrutiny that followed him throughout his career, and what it was like earning a second chance with the Miami Heat and reaching the NBA Finals alongside some of the game's biggest names from Lebron James to Dwayne. Wade to Chris Bosh.
Beyond basketball, Greg discusses his struggles with mental health, depression, addiction, self-worth, and the challenges of rebuilding his life after the game. He speaks candidly about regrets, losing loved ones, what ifs , public perception, and the process of finding peace with a career that never unfolded the way anyone expected.
This episode isn't about what Greg Oden wasn't. It's about who he is, what he endured, and how he found the strength to keep moving forward when the world had already written his story for him. Greg's new chapter is leading as a dedicated father, mentor, college advisor and also filmmaker, with his feature film "Bust" getting ready to release.
A powerful conversation about resilience, perspective, redemption, and one of basketball's greatest "what ifs."
GET MERCH HERE: pivotpodcast.com
FOLLOW THE PIVOT PODCAST:
INSTAGRAM | instagram.com/thepivot
TWITTER | twitter.com/thepivot
TIKTOK | tiktok.com/@thepivot
FACEBOOK | facebook.com/thepivotpodcast
SPOTIFY | open.spotify.com/show/5KtXTWiC3J5WW1CVTpYG5V
APPLE PODCASTS | podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-pivot-podcast/id1603292451
Press play above — the video streams right here. The free Spot Sports app also queues clips like this one alongside your followed teams and athletes, plus live nba scores.
From the The Pivot Podcast channel. Tap the channel link below the title to browse more uploads.
Follow Kevin Durant in the Spot Sports app — new highlight videos and podcast appearances push to your feed automatically.
Spot Sports' watch-cost tool maps your zip to the cheapest legal stack for nba games, accounting for DMA-locked RSNs, league passes, and direct-to-consumer apps.