Top draft pick Greg Oden needs to have his tonsils removed and is expected to miss the rest of the Portland Trail Blazers’ summer-league games.
After he tapes the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles, he will undergo a tonsillectomy Saturday in Vancouver, Wash., the team said.
Recovery time is expected to be two to three weeks.
“Greg felt that this was the right decision to make in the interests of his health, and we support that decision 100 percent,” Trail Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard said. “The sooner he gets the procedure done, the sooner he can get back on the court at full strength.”
Oden, a 7-foot center who played one season at Ohio State, was the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft last month.
Oden will miss Sunday’s game against the Seattle SuperSonics that would have pitted him against No. 2 pick Kevin Durant.
Heat: Coach Pat Riley expressed relief over the news that forward Antoine Walker was not injured during a robbery at the player’s Chicago home.
Walker and one of his relatives were bound at gunpoint while multiple robbers took a car, cash and jewelry from the three-time all-star’s offseason residence Monday night.
Walker – a Chicago native – was shaken up, but not physically injured, said agent Mark Bartelstein.
“I’ve talked to Mark. Have not been able to get through to Antoine yet, but he’s OK,” Riley said. “It’s what it is. It had to be a terrifying ordeal for him. Until I speak with him, I don’t have any knowledge other than what I’ve heard from other people.”
The vehicle taken in the robbery was found, abandoned, in Chicago on Tuesday morning.
Police have not announced any arrests in the case.
Timberwolves: Minnesota signed first-round draft pick Corey Brewer to a two-year deal worth $4.4 million with team options for two more years. The 6-9 swingman from Florida was the seventh pick in the draft.
