Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo did not have the kind of comeback tour he probably envisioned.
Oladipo missed the majority of the 2019-20 NBA season after suffering a ruptured quad tendon in January of 2019, and he played in just 13 games before the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
However, Oladipo is eager to return to action, and he said he has far more to prove despite suffering such a devastating injury (via Michael Lee of The Athletic):
“At the end of the day, I wanted my name to be mentioned with one of the greats. So, when this quad injury happened, my job is not over. My legacy isn’t finished. This knee is a little bump in the road, I guess you would say. But someone once told me a long time ago, ‘If the road you’re on is easy, then you’re on the wrong road.’ So I hate calling it a ‘bump in a road.’”
Oladipo feels the basketball world forgot about the kind of player he was becoming prior to sitting on the shelf for over a year.
The 28-year-old is using the long absence as something of a proving ground going forward (via Lee):
“Me, personally, I feel they don’t really respect me. And that’s fine. I get it. It was only one year or a year and a few months, or whatever the case may be. And I still got a lot to prove. I want the whole world to remember my name. That’s why I do what I do. And that’s why I’m going to come back stronger than ever because I still have some unfinished business. And I still got a lot of things that I need to accomplish and want to accomplish — so my name can ring bells.”
Oladipo was averaging 13.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists prior to the suspension of play, shooting below 40 percent from the field and struggling to get back up to speed.
The Pacers hope Oladipo recaptures his form in short order, especially considering the 2020-21 season is a potential walk year.
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