PORTLAND, OR — Full nude pictures have surfaced on the internet of Portland Trailblazers’ star and former Ohio State player Greg Oden. HuffingtonPost.com first posted on Tuesday that the images have surfaced on WorldStarHipHop.com and that the face in images resemble Oden’s, but could not be confirmed at the time.

Now HuffingtonPost.com says:

Greg Oden, the Blazers center and first overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft, is sorry about the naked pictures of him that appeared online Tuesday. Oden told the media Tuesday night that the nude photos are “very embarrassing,” and said he “would like to apologize to everybody: Portland, the fans, the organization.”

Oden, speaking in somber tones and not shying away from questions, said that when he learned that the pictures reached the internet, “my heart dropped.” He says the pictures were take more than 18 months ago for a “lady friend.