On April 20, 2007, Oden announced that he would be entering the 2007 NBA draft. On June 28, 2007, he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the #1 overall pick. To begin his Trail Blazers career, Oden chose the uniform number 52. On July 1, before his first NBA practice, Oden was signed to a contract which provided for two guaranteed seasons and team options for third and fourth seasons. On September 14, 2007, Oden had microfracture surgery on his ailing right knee. He missed the entire season. Oden's progress was recorded on the Trail Blazers' website and his blog.
