National Basketball Association

Blazers release injury-plagued Oden

Published Mar. 15, 2012 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

The Trail Blazers have waived center Greg Oden, ending the former No. 1 overall pick's disappointing career in Portland.

Oden was limited to just 82 games by injuries since the Blazers took him over Kevin Durant with the first selection in the 2007 draft. He recently underwent his third microfracture knee surgery, the second on his left to go with one on the right.

Oden averaged 9.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocked shots. He will become an unrestricted free agent next season.

The Blazers were busy Thursday on trade deadline day after collapsing and falling out of the Western Conference playoff standings. They fired coach Nate McMillan and traded Gerald Wallace and Marcus Camby in separate deals.