Miami Heat should try Victor Oladipo coming off the bench

It’s too early to dole out a grade for the Miami Heat‘s acquisition of Victor Oladipo. The team is 3-1 with the former All-Star guard in its lineup despite his poor box score numbers. In 27.8 minutes per game with the Heat, Oladipo is averaging a measly 12.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists on 37.2 percent shooting from the field and 23. percent from beyond the arc.

Miami didn’t trade much for Oladipo and they don’t need him to stuff the stat sheet, so the early returns are not alarming, especially considering the team’s record with him so far. He has been fine on offense while playing some good defense, including taking two total charges already and averaging 1.8 steals per game.

Unfortunately, the Heat could be without him for a little while. Oladipo injured his right knee and there is no timetable for his return yet. Head coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters that the team is still gathering information about his injury.

Oladipo didn’t travel with the team to Portland, suggesting he will sit out the four-game road trip that is currently underway. Whenever he does return, Miami should use him as a reserve rather than a starter.

The Miami Heat should try using newly acquired Victor Oladipo off the bench. He can try to get back into a groove against backup units.

The Heat traded for Oladipo to infuse life into their offense and help him get as close to his All-Star form as possible. With the Rockets, Oladipo was oft-injured and it showed in his dismal shooting splits. Still, he showed enough for Miami to pull the trigger on trading for him. Perhaps the cheap price tag — a decent rotation player in Kelly Olynyk, a mostly injured bench player in Avery Bradley and a pick swap in 2022 — made it easier for them to do so.

Regardless, he’s here. And Miami needs him to be really effective if they want to defend their Eastern Conference crown. After missing his first three games following the trade, Oladipo was immediately plugged into the starting lineup and has performed decently even without his shot falling.

However, this Miami Heat team needs his shot to fall for him to make a profound impact, which is what the front office expects out of him. Per the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, team president Pat Riley said that Oladipo offers plenty of skills that support Miami’s stars, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.

"On Oladipo: “Victor will give us an entirely different kind of player than what we have on our team. Victor gives you a slasher, runner, quick player, scorer. We know him really well.“I think he’s a flat out scorer. We have scorers. Both Bam [Adebayo] and Jimmy [Butler] have proven they can score the ball. Both are high IQ players, both passers, rebounders. Sometimes you might need a player different from the players that might be supporting them as shooters. Victor brings you the whole package."

Indeed, Oladipo has been productive alongside the Heat’s star players. That three-man combination has a 10.9 net rating. Oladipo already has a feel for the defensive attention both stars get and knows that if he gets open, they’ll find him.

Oladipo shouldn’t have many problems playing off-ball. He has a good sense for when to cut, the bounce to finish in traffic — just ask Andre Drummond — and has been good at catch-and-shoot threes this season, converting 37.5 percent of his 3.6 attempts per game. His solo shot creation, however, hasn’t been nearly as efficient. That’s what Miami could really use from him.

Right now, Oladipo’s only dependable source of offense is taking it to the hoop. His 11 drives with Miami have resulted in seven makes, only three of which were unassisted and one of which was a wide-open fast break. He’s shooting 10-of-12 in the restricted area and just 6-of-31 from everywhere else. Oladipo needs to expand his range and it would be easier to find a rhythm in the bench unit.

With the abundance of options that the Miami Heat have, the most logical replacement for Oladipo in the starting lineup is Kendrick Nunn, who has started 26 games this year and performed admirably. Placing Oladipo with the Heat’s main four bench players – Goran Dragic, Tyler Herro, Andre Iguodala and Nemanja Bjelica – would be a mutually beneficial relationship.

Although the 3-point percentages from Herro and Bjelica – 34.0 and 21.4, respectively — don’t show it this season, both players are shooters. For shooters to get looks, they need guys who can bring their defenders off them by collapsing the defense inside. Oladipo is still able to do that and find open shooters on the perimeter.

Against backups, Oladipo should be able to have his way more with the defense. On-ball reps are the best way for him to find a groove. Also, he won’t have to do all the heavy lifting playing with Dragic and Herro, who can create their own shot and make plays as well.

The three-guard lineup could be a highly impactful bench offensive triumvirate. With Oladipo, Dragic will have more help pressuring the defense in the paint and Herro and Bjelica could bump their percentages up. Dragic and Herro could help Oladipo do the same as he recovers from yet another injury.

Using Oladipo off the bench doesn’t have to mean taking away all of his minutes with Butler and Adebayo, either. Spoelstra’s mixing and matching should give Oladipo plenty of playing time with Miami’s stars.

For Oladipo to be the best version of himself he can be right now, he needs to find more ways to score. Miami needs that as well, as their offensive firepower from last season has cooled off. With their improvements and defense, all they need is a little more spark from Oladipo to heat up and the Miami Heat could look like Eastern Conference contenders again.