Heat guard Victor Oladipo: “I’m one of the best players in the world”

Miami Heat guard Victor Oladipo is ready to dominate the court in the upcoming 2022-23 season. On “The Vince Carter Show” podcast, when Carter asked him what he’s trying to prove this year, Oladipo replied, “That I’m one of the best players in the world. Period.” The clip is featured at 2:50 in the video below.

“I think that my injury has kind of built a misconception of who I am as a player.” At another point during the podcast, Oladipo stated: “They messed up my surgery. I sat back. I tore my quad, I sat back. But now it’s my time to rise. I truly believe that. So that’s the revenge tour.”

The nine-year veteran appeared in just eight games last season with the Heat. In those few games, Oladipo averaged 12.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.

Can Victor Oladipo stay healthy with the Heat?

Additionally, the guard has played a combined 12 games the last two seasons. To say that Oladipo has dealt with injuries the past few years would be a massive understatement.

On Instagram, Oladipo uploaded an image of himself on the court with the caption, “no days off #revengetour.”

In the 2020-21 season, Victor Oladipo played nine games with the Indiana Pacers, 20 games with the Houston Rockets and four contests with the Heat. While with the Rockets, he averaged 21.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5 assists and 1.2 steals per game.

Furthermore, Oladipo has not recorded career-high numbers since his first season with the Pacers. In the 2017-18 season, the guard averaged career-highs 23.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.4 steals per game.

Through 75 games played with Indiana that season, he also shot 47.7% from the field and 37.1% from beyond the arc. Of course, Oladipo won the NBA Most Improved Player in 2018.

On January 23, 2019, the guard suffered a season-ending quad tendon injury.

Oladipo should focus more on living up to the contract he signed with the Heat. Staying healthy is more important than proving to everyone that he’s ‘one of the best players in the world.’ And he can do that.

Last month, the 30-year-old guard signed a two-year, $18 million deal with the Heat. He is set to earn $8,563,846 in the upcoming season, and his player option is worth $9,346,154 for the 2023-24 season.

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