Oladipo Choosing To Skip NBA Restart
Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo announced last week that he would not be playing with the team when the NBA returns to action later this month. Oladipo will instead continue focusing on his rehab of a ruptured quad tendon.
Oladipo suffered the injury during the 2018-19 season, and he did not make his 2019-20 season debut until January. The guard played in just 13 games for the Pacers this season before the league shut down operations in March.
The Pacers kept Oladipo on a minutes restriction, as he averaged less than 26 minutes a game in those 13 appearances. He averaged 13.8 points, but that is well below his career average.
The 2017-18 season was the last year in which Oladipo played an entire year, and it was the best season of his career. The former number two overall pick averaged 23.1 points per game in 2017-18, leading the NBA with 2.4 steals per game.
By choosing to sit out the rest of the season, Oladipo is hoping to be back to 100 percent to start the 2020-21 season. The Pacers don’t have a realistic chance to win the NBA Championship this season, even if Oladipo were to play.
The 2020-21 season will be extremely important for Oladipo and the Indiana Pacers as well. It is the final year of his contract, and the team could be looking to trade him before the trade deadline in an effort to bring in some other talent or draft picks.
Even though Oladipo will not be playing with the Pacers, he is still planning on traveling to Orlando with the team. The guard will have to go through all of the same health and safety protocols as healthy players, but this will give him a chance to continue his workouts with the team.
Brogdon, Turner Will Play Despite Concerns
As NBA players began preparing for the restart, several players throughout the league were hesitant about the plan. Two of the players that were outspoken were Pacers starters Malcolm Brogdon and Myles Turner.
Brogdon tested positive for COVID-19 and experienced symptoms associated with the virus. Even though the team was not allowed to announce which of their players tested positive, Brogdon issued a statement confirming the diagnosis.
Brogdon announced on June 24 that he was progressing well after contracting the disease and that he was starting to recover. He announced at that time that he was planning on rejoining the team in Orlando, but he wasn’t as committed to playing just a week prior.
Turner was considering sitting out of the restart after his father also contracted COVID-19. His father was forced to quarantine inside a bedroom for 10 days, but he has since recovered.
Turner was living with his father at the time and saw how COVID-19 affects someone. He was worried about catching the virus himself and was unsure about returning to the floor.
Eventually, Turner decided to rejoin his teammates after approving of the NBA’s plan to keep players and staff safe.
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