Hindsight is 20/20. As the NBA continues to evolve, it becomes easier and easier to dub Greg Oden as the biggest bust in league history. Being drafted one spot before Kevin Durant certainly doesn’t help but is it fair to label Oden as a bust if he never had the chance to properly succeed?

In our new series ‘Prism’ we aim to tackle the public perception of iconic athletes and sports personalities, in an effort to better understand the person, where that perception came from, and what other aspects of their history it overlooks. In the case of Greg Oden, he’s consistently labeled as one of the biggest busts in the history of the NBA. Athletes typically fit this description when they fail to meet a certain level of expectations but Oden’s case is unique. To fully understand why Oden is perceived this way, we have to remember his extreme potential, how the NBA operated before he was drafted, and distinguish why not all busts are the same.