5. Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers
The fifth and final player on an underdog team that will have to play their best in order for their team to succeed in these playoffs is Indiana Pacers guard, Victor Oladipo.
Victor has really yet to find his footing and get back to where he was prior to his injury. He struggled prior to the pause of playback in March, and coming into the playoffs he is averaging just 14.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game on 39-32-81 shooting splits while posting an 11.3 PER.
These are not exactly the numbers Indiana fans have come to expect from Oladipo. It has taken him a little bit longer than he would like to get back to that All-NBA level. But the folks in Indiana know he has it in him from when he went toe to toe with Lebron in the first round of the playoffs in 2018. That was the year that some consider being LeBron’s best individual postseason performance. And Oladipo and the Pacers had him on the ropes, taking the Cavs to seven games.
In that series, Oladipo averaged 22.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 2.4 steals per game on 42-40-73 shooting splits. He even recorded a triple-double in Game 6 of that series.
That is the Victor Oladipo that the Pacers need to show up in the playoffs. Whether or not Victor is there physically right now or not is in question. But he definitely has that level of player in him.
He has shown flashes of his old self both prior to the hiatus, and down in the bubble. He still has that explosiveness to the rim that helped earn him his two All-Star appearances. It is just a matter of time.
https://twitter.com/Pacers/status/1293653672677834753?s=20
While the Pacers are the 4 seed and the Miami Heat are the 5 seed in their matchup, there is no question that the Pacers are the underdog in this series due to the injuries they are dealing with to Domantas Sabonis and Jeremy Lamb.
With those Lamb out rehabbing his knee and Sabonis likely out for at least the first round, it is going to be a tough matchup with Miami. Bam Adebayo has emerged as a star, and Jimmy Butler is the same old Jimmy Butler.
But with the emergence of TJ Warren in the bubble, and Myles Turner and Malcolm Brogdon being as solid as they have been all season long, the Pacers could give the Heat a tough series. They will just need their All-Star Victor Oladipo to get back to the level they know he is capable of performing at.