Victor Oladipo’s Emergence Into a Star

December 18, 2017 Off By tailgatesports

Before tonight’s matchup with the Celtics, let’s talk about the Indiana Pacers’ Victor Oladipo. The 6 foot 4 shooting guard was traded this past offseason to the Pacers in the Paul George trade that sent Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to the Pacers in exchange for Paul George to the Thunder. Many NBA fans, including myself, saw the trade as stupid for the Pacers because we all speculated that Indiana could have received a much better package rather than eating up Oladipo’s $21M/yr contract. The Pacers also received Sabonis in the deal, but no one really thought anything about him, considering the Pacers were giving up superstar Paul George for him. Now, back to the man of the hour, Victor Oladipo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za95hoOSzjk

If you have not yet seen or heard about him recently, Victor Oladipo has been on a tear as of late. The shooting guard is a top ten scorer in the league right now, scoring 24 points per game to go along with his 4 assists and 6 rebounds per game. Most recently, in the month of December, he is averaging an astonishing 29 points per game. Just 10 days ago, he led his team to a 106-102 win over the Cavaliers while posting 33 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists (see above). This emergent play by Oladipo is very evident in the box score. This season, he is shooting 48% from the field and 43% from three, up from his career averages of 44% and 36% respectively. Both his field goal percentage and three-point percentage have increased each season since entering the league. His statistics and even his leadership have been utterly impressive. Pacers coach Nate McMillan said after last night’s win in Brooklyn, “[Oladipo’s] a guy we’re trying to develop into a franchise player. He’s come in with a lot of confidence.” Earlier in the season, Coach McMillan raved about Oladipo, calling him hungry, disciplined, and determined to become a better player. McMillan said “He absorbs everything that you tell him. He’s still a young guy who wants to learn. I’ve had more film sessions with him than I’ve had, really with any player. It’s because he wants to get better. He wants to improve. He’s showing the potential he has.” Oladipo is a beast on the court, and has shown his leadership and eagerness to improve off the court as well. It is only a matter of time before we see his name on an NBA All-Star roster.

In his fifth year in the league, Victor Oladipo seems to be truly finding his groove. He always seemed a little out of place while playing alongside Russell Westbrook in OKC and the SG is now showing that he can absolutely thrive with the ball in his hands. Playing with big man Myles Turner has been huge for Oladipo and Turner alike, as they continue to play off of one another. A team that many people counted out is now tied for 4th place in the Eastern Conference. After the Paul George trade, fans thought the Pacers would be in rebuilding mode, and would turn their focus on building around a core of Myles Turner. However, because of Oladipo’s dominance and all-star caliber play, the Pacers are becoming a legitimate playoff team, and a tough one to beat. A starting lineup of Darren Collison, Victor Oladipo, Thaddeus Young, Bojan Bogdanović, and Myles Turner, with Lance Stephenson and Cory Joseph coming off the bench should not be taken lightly. With little time together, the team has developed chemistry and it has shown with their impressive 17-13 record. Coming off a win over the Nets last night, the Pacers face a true test tonight as they attempt to defend home-court against the best team in the East, the Boston Celtics!

Do you still think the Pacers got crushed in that Paul George trade?