Victor Oladipo is a mixed bag for Indiana Pacers fans. On one hand, he turned the end of the Paul George era from a full-blown, miserable rebuild to a fifth-seed team that was incredibly fun to watch and nearly won against a prime LeBron James, all while he became an MVP candidate.
The Pacers have not had many award winners in their history. To have someone be celebrated by the larger NBA community while representing Indiana is unfortunately so rare. Oladipo is one of six different Pacers to make an All-NBA team and one of only five Pacers to win Most Improved Player. He was immense. He was amazing. He was everything.
A crushing knee injury ruined his ascension when he should've been leading Indiana to contention in the East. That's when everything started to go bad.
The other hand of that mixed bag is as disappointing as Oladipo's rise was exciting. He actively sabotaged the Pacers on his way out the door. After he returned from his rehab, he became more and more irate with Indiana's management while simultaneously begging other teams' players to come get him.
The Oladipo era ended in flames when Victor was dumped in Houston as part of the trade that sent James Harden to the Nets. He never made his way back to the level he was at in 2018, his first year in Indiana.
While Oladipo is currently mounting an NBA comeback, it does not look like he'll find an opportunity just yet. Instead he'll continue grinding in the G-League.
From a "terrible trade return" to a terrific revival
When Paul George was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Pacers were nationally lambasted for getting such a bad return for their star centerpiece. Indiana failed to bring back any draft capital. Instead, they acquired the exact same package the Thunder had gotten for Serge Ibaka, a decidedly worse player.
Oladipo joined Domantas Sabonis on a Pacers squad that was expected to finish with a top-10 pick. Victor's ascension to what he was supposed to be when he was drafted second overall (a two-way shooting guard who could get downhill at will, dominate the rim, and guard the opponent's best player) changed every bit of that expectation.
Indiana finished 48-34. Oladipo made his first All-Star Game and finished on the third-team All-NBA. Sabonis became the starting power forward, before eventually bringing back Tyrese Haliburton in a trade with the Sacramento Kings.
A package that was so universally hated actually ended up being far better than expected. While neither player is now on the Pacers, their subsequent moves led to Haliburton and Caris Levert, who was flipped into the two picks that became Ben Sheppard and Andrew Nembhard.
The Pacers did not win a title. They unfortunately did not get particularly close. Even then, basketball is not just about winning. It is also about excitement, love of the sport, and connection with fans.
In that way, few players ever did a better job at that than Victor Oladipo, who came home to the state he chose for college and found home on the court once again.
Things don't have to last forever for us to remember just how great they were.
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