It appears that All-Star guard Victor Oladipo isn’t so keen on leaving the Indiana Pacers as some previous reports indicated.
In a recent chat with ESPN’s Eric Woodyard, Oladipo labeled the rumors of his wishes to be traded as “nonsense”.
“Growing up, I was always taught not to engage in nonsense,” said Oladipo. “I never have. I never came out and said that I didn’t want to play for the Pacers or be in this organization but, yeah, I’m focused on now. Here and now.”
Oladipo also added that he won’t let the chatter affect his performance on the basketball court or lose focus “of what really matters and that’s this team, my teammates, this organization and making sure I’m healthy.”
Victor Oladipo is entering the final year of his contract but the Pacers haven’t been aggressive in trying to lock him down to an extension this offseason. There are indications that the franchise is willing to let him play out the season and determine whether to make him an offer based on his performances.
Although Oladipo reached an All-Star level of play in Indiana, he is also coming back from a ruptured quad tendon injury that caused him to miss more than a year of action. He returned to the court in January, but his performances were lukewarm, and he didn’t look like the player he once was.
In 19 games in the 2019-20 season, Oladipo only averaged 14.5 points per game, which was his lowest output since his rookie season. For comparison, in his first season in Pacers’ jersey, he was scoring 23.1 points per game. That being said, look for him to bounce back strong.
