Among players, heading into this season Victor Oladipo was one of the NBA’s most important and unpredictable variables. Most of the past two seasons were spent trying to rediscover the player he was before a ruptured right quadriceps derailed his career back in January 2019.
It wasn’t pretty. Before the 2020–21 season kicked off, Oladipo hardly resembled the scintillating blur whose dynamism, range and defensive intensity was rewarded with an All-NBA nod in 2018. Doubt began to sow itself into the two-time All-Star’s value, potential and ability to impact winning basketball at the high bar he’d previously set.