PORTLAND, Ore. -- Greg Oden's rookie season with the

Portland Trail Blazers abruptly ended before it began when the

7-footer had knee surgery on Thursday.

The top pick in the June draft went in for an exploratory

procedure on his right knee and ended up having microfracture

surgery, which means he will sit out the season.

"Greg looked at me as he was coming out of his surgery, and he

and his mom Zoe probably said 'sorry' 20 times," Blazers general

manager Kevin Pritchard said. "I could feel the weight of the

world on his shoulders. And as a leader and as leaders of this

organization, my first thought was how lucky we were to have a guy

that cares about the organization that much."

Dr. Don Roberts performed the surgery to repair the damage,

which Pritchard described as the size of a fingertip. Oden is

expected to be on crutches for up to eight weeks. Full recovery

likely will take six to 12 months, the team said.

"At this point in time, we don't see him coming back this

season," Pritchard said.

Oden was the No. 1 pick in the June draft out of Ohio State,

where he averaged 15.7 points and 9.6 rebounds.

The loss of Oden before the season was a blow to the

organization. There was much fanfare when the Blazers got the first

pick in the draft, and even more when the team chose Oden.