Greg Oden reportedly played in two pick-up games at a local Portland area gym on Thursday night and the Blazers are dumbfounded, not to mention visibly upset.

But what this comes down to is frustration from both sides. The Blazers are disappointed by the news; Oden on the other hand is clearly hungry to play but picked the wrong time and forum to do so.   

"We heard about that, and I talked to him today,'' head coach Nate McMillan told Jason Quick of the Oregonian. "I let him know he can't do that."

Word leaked of Oden's play at a Tualatin, OR. 24 Hour Fitness late Thursday night after someone who participated in the games posted a thread on Basketball Forum.com. The 10 line post details the "disturbing news" and how Oden "obviously dominated", before explaining Oden's friends apparently "convinced him to play".

Soon, what was once an internet rumor quickly turned into reality and questions and concerns instantly circulated all the way down to Oakland, CA., where the Blazers lost to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night.

McMillan reportedly called Oden, who explained he wasn't "running hard", only to have McMillan reply the same way anyone with a vested interest in the young Blazers center's bright future might: "I really don't care".

This isn't how Portland envisions Oden on the court at all – mixing it up with the locals at 24 Hour Fitness with everyone on the court wondering, "who is guarding the new guy?". Nothing good can come of this excursion except a lesson learned.

And that will come. But much like rehabbing an injury, obtaining wisdom takes time.  

The Blazers head coach chalked it up to a part of "growing up and maturing" and reminded Oden he "just can't do that", while Blazers trainer Jay Jensen said Oden felt, "a little event was being made into a big deal".

Had Oden injured his surgically repaired knee on some freak play, perhaps he might think it were a "big deal".

Obviously this news is concerning on many levels, particularly knowing Oden's sixth-month rehab from microfracture surgery on his right knee is constantly raved about in Portland. In fact, McMillan himself just recently took part in one of Oden's "workouts" with him, which included sprinting a steep, half-mile residential street in a nearby Portland suburb.

Running "The Hill" is a workout Oden does three times a week. Seeing the workout and feeling its painful effects himself, McMillan received a new appreciation for the 20-year-old's work ethic. That same day, Jensen explained how it is the Blazers who are holding Oden back and that there are no problems with his knee.

All Oden did on Thursday night was put those words into action without considering the re-action.

Right now, Oden has about a month of daily rehab work left, complete with hour-long shooting drills, six-mile bike rides, full-court sprints, pool workouts , a weightlifting regiment and pilates class.

That's the plan.

Jensen and McMillan –and certainly the Blazers training staff, front office, Paul Allen, and entire fanbase for that matter – don't want to rush Oden back. But apparently Oden has other ideas.

Let's chalk this up to a poor lack of judgment on Oden's part and hopefully before too long he'll come to realize playing in a couple pick-up games at a gym was not part of the Blazers rehab plans.

Stick to the plan Greg.