Former NBA No. 1 overall draft pick Greg Oden, whose playing career was shortened due to injuries, has since transitioned into coaching. And after two years on the Butler basketball staff, Oden has departed the program, IndyStar has reported.
Oden joined his former Ohio State basketball head coach Thad Matta in 2022 when Matta returned to Indianapolis to become the Butler head coach. Matta had coached Oden for the big man's lone season with OSU, which saw the Buckeyes fall in the national championship game to Florida. Oden, who went back to Ohio State to finish his degree following the conclusion of his professional playing career, became a student manager for the Buckeyes' men's basketball team shortly before Matta stepped down amid declining play and health issues.
After five years away from coaching, Matta was named the new Butler basketball coach, returning to the school he worked at as an assistant for six seasons and began his head coaching career in 2000. Oden, an Indianapolis native, tagged along as director of basketball operations, while Jon Diebler, another former Ohio State player under Matta, became the director of recruiting for the Bulldogs.
In Oden's two years on staff, Butler went 14-18 and then 18-15, the latter of which being the program's first winning season since 2019-20. The Bulldogs also qualified for the NIT, making their first postseason appearance in five years. Oden did not say what he plans on doing next after leaving the Butler staff, according to IndyStar.
IndyStar reported that Connor McCaffery, the son of Iowa basketball head coach Fran McCaffery and the boyfriend of Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark, “has been targeted” to fill Oden's place on the Butler coaching staff. Patrick McCaffery, Connor's brother, recently transferred from Iowa to Butler, and Jack, a 2025 recruit and Connor and Patrick's younger brother, is committed to Butler.
Greg Oden was drafted ahead of Kevin Durant
A force of nature in college basketball, Greg Oden became the Portland Trail Blazers' No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, ahead of eventual MVP and Finals MVP Kevin Durant. While the decision seems ludicrous now, Oden had earned the status of the best prospect in the draft considering his dominance on both ends of the floor at Ohio State.
However, Oden would get very few opportunities to show his talent on an NBA floor. As a result of numerous lower-body injuries, Oden played just 105 regular-season and nine playoff games in the NBA, with his last appearance being Game 4 of the 2014 NBA Finals when he was a member of the Miami Heat.
Oden would play briefly in China and resurface in The Basketball Tournament, but Oden's professional career fell well short of expectations due to his injuries.