National Basketball Association

Greg Oden declares that his career as a professional basketball player is over

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:51 p.m. ET

Rob Perez

The first overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, Greg Oden, has thrown in the towel on his playing career.

In a recent interview with the Indianapolis Star's Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Oden, who was notoriously selected by the Portland Trail Blazers instead of Kevin Durant, elaborated on what the future holds:

"It's over ... I wanted to stay around basketball and coach gave me a lifeline to be here, to give me something to do with my afternoons."

So what is he doing now and what are his plans for the future? Currently, Oden is acting as an adviser for current Ohio State Buckeyes basketball players -- educating them on how to deal with NBA life:

"I have talked to them about the situation and going to the pros and what's expected ... I'm still trying to figure out my life. Since I've been in fourth grade, all I've known was basketball. I'm just trying to better myself and work on my degree and set something up for the future of my family."

Oden finished his NBA career averaging 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, making a grand total of 105 regular-season appearances.