Heat ready to integrate Oladipo, explains the ‘scary thing’ about his return from injury

Back in September, the only time Victor Oladipo has spoken to South Florida reporters since his second major right knee operation in two years, he flashed his infectious smile and said: “I feel like I came here for a reason and there’s a purpose for me being here and I’m trying to find out what that is. I believe we can do something very special here for years to come and I want to be a part of it.”

That reason - and whether he fits here longterm - should become clear in the weeks ahead, with Oladipo set to make his 2021-22 debut as early as Monday’s game against the Houston Rockets.

Coach Erik Spoelstra said Saturday night that he would speak with trainers before deciding whether Oladipo would play Monday, which has been the target date. “He’s close,” Spoelstra said.

Oladipo was listed as questionable for Monday’s game, the first time he has had that designation this season.

The Heat is hopeful they’ll eventually see something close to the former All Star guard and elite defender, not the player who was inefficient offensively in the wake of the first surgery 27 months ago, an operation that sidelined him a year but ultimately did not fix the injury.

After being acquired from Houston last February, Oladipo reinjured the quadriceps tendon in his right knee just four games into his Heat career. In May, he had similar surgery to the one he needed after sustaining that same injury in an Indiana Pacers uniform in December 2019.

Was the first surgery simply not done correctly?

“Essentially it wasn’t the right version for me,” he said. “It didn’t give me my best opportunity to get my leg back to where it needs to be. Things are different now.”

Beyond several practices with the Heat’s G-League team in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Oladipo’s work in recent weeks has consisted largely of individual workouts with Heat coaches and intense two-on-two games with Kyle Guy, Omer Yurtseven and other Heat reserves.

Teammates have been encouraged.

“I’ve seen enough to know he’s definitely better than he was last year,” Udonis Haslem said.

“He looks great,” Caleb Martin said. “He’s going to add a huge boost to us. Adding a player of his caliber to our team is always going to be a positive. He’s too good. He’s going to find his way. We’re all going to adjust to him and figure out how we look with him in it.

“He will find his way. We will adjust to him. He can’t do anything but make us a lot better. That’s the scary thing about it.”

Jimmy Butler said Oladipo “looks great. He’s been working for a long time, countless amounts of hours and rehab in the gym and the weight room. I’m excited for him to get back. Whenever they say it’s go time, I will be happy to have him suit up for us.”

Spoelstra appreciates Oladipo’s upbeat attitude through this ordeal.

“It shows you he has great fortitude,” Spoelstra said. “That, probably, when you talk about mental health, that is the most challenging thing for an athlete. You don’t always feel like you’re a part of it. You have doubts. You don’t know what it’s going to look like on the other side, when you get healthy. You’re not sure if all the work is mattering.

“That’s a tough place for an athlete. I’ve admired how Vic has kept his positive spirit; I love that quality about him. He always has a smile on his face.”

At his best, Oladipo can give the Heat another exceptional defender, a slasher, a skilled passer and - when needed - a proven scorer who can create his own shot.

In 33 games last season for Indiana, Houston and the Heat last season, Oladipo shot just 40.8 percent from the field and 32.6 percent on threes - down from his 43.8 and 34.7 career averages.

He still averaged 19.8 points per game in those 33 games, the second-highest scoring total of his eight-year career, but the efficiency wasn’t there and Oladipo said lingering effects of the knee injury had a lot to do with that.

But his rebound average (4.8) and assist average (4.6) last year were higher than his career averages.

Players shot 45.5 percent against him, compared with the 46.1 those players shot overall.

So even while limited physically, Oladipo was productive last season. The question now is whether he can ever again resemble the player who was an All Star in 2018 and 2019, the one who averaged 23.1 points and 2.4 steals for the Pacers in 2017-18.

He opted to sign a one-year deal with the Heat at the minimum. Because Miami has his Bird Rights, the Heat can surpass the cap to re-sign him this summer.

But if the Heat is determined not to pay a luxury tax next season, Miami might not have much to give Oladipo and stay under the tax line. If the Heat gives Martin a deal in the $8 million per year range and keeps every other player on the roster, then Miami would have only about $4 to $5 million to offer Oladipo without surpassing the projected $147 million tax.

But if Miami bypasses signing Martin - who has been a revelation - and keeps the rest of the roster intact, the Heat could offer Oladipo a contract starting in the $12 million range and remain under the tax.

More cap space could be created if P.J. Tucker opts out and isn’t resigned, but the Heat likely will try to keep Tucker if he opts out.

Oladipo explained in September that he stayed with the Heat on a low-money deal because “I feel there’s unfinished business here. I don’t know what our team would have done with a healthy version of me because I wasn’t given that opportunity; I was dealt a bad hand.”

Oladipo said in September that his journey has “been really tough.... I want to have one of the best comeback stories ever.”

He begins writing that story this week.

▪ Along with Oladipo, the Heat listed Caleb Martin (left Achilles soreness) as questionable for Monday’s game. Kyle Lowry (personal reasons), Markieff Morris (return to competition reconditioning) and Javonte Smart (G League) are out.