PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Reality has set in for Greg Oden.

The injured No. 1 draft pick watched from afar as the Portland Trail Blazers opened the season with a 106-97 loss to the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs.

The 7-foot center is still on crutches after having microfracture surgery on his knee. He was supposed to make the trip to Texas, but a head cold combined with the lack of mobility prompted team officials to keep him home.

Oden posted his comments on his blog on Thursday. (The freestyle text is his.)

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"I felt so bad because all i could think about is what it would be like if i was playing. I know Tim Duncan would of bust my head, more than a couple of times, but i wanted to know how i would play against him," Oden wrote. "Yesterday was a very hard day for me because all i could think about was going out there and playing."

Oden was the top pick in the NBA draft out of Ohio State. Fan elation over the choice was dampened when Oden had the unexpected surgery, which will cause him to miss the season.

He is still a big part of the team, however. The Nov. 9 game at the Rose Garden against Memphis is Greg Oden Bobblehead night, and a stories-tall Oden jersey emblazoned with a No. 1 still hangs on the Rose Garden.

That didn't dampen his disappointment over the opener. LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 27 points, and Martell Webster added 21.

"(That) LaMarcus playing so good didnt help because the announcers keep saying "with Aldridge playing so good, it makes you wonder what it would be like if the other piece of the puzzle was there," that really hurt me because i want to play so bad," Oden wrote.

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STARTERS: The season's first starting lineup for Portland consisted of Jarrett Jack at point guard, Brandon Roy at shooting guard, Martell Webster at small forward, LaMarcus Aldridge at power forward and Joel Przybilla at center.

Jack edged out Steve Blake after he put in extra work over the summer and outplayed Blake in the preseason. Webster was especially impressive in exhibition games, earning the start over Travis Outlaw.

After a 106-97 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the season opener, the Blazers head to New Orleans for a game Friday night.

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NEW THEME: The Blazers kicked off their new season with a new marketing theme: "Rise With Us."

The team says it will include fans in the journey, documenting the season by putting cameras in the hands of players, staff members and fans.

"We want to pull back the curtain even farther and engage the entire community in this very real journey of how our young and exciting team will grow and how the team and the city will unite," team President Larry Miller said in a statement.

The Blazers said this week that only single seats and standing room are available for the team's home opener Nov. 7 against New Orleans. That night, Portland's Morrison Bridge will be lit in red and white.