Miami Heat: Why health isn’t the biggest roadblock for Victor Oladipo

There is a belief around the league that Miami Heat guard, Victor Oladipo, could be right about the timetable to return to action from surgery to repair his torn right quad. Oladipo’s camp believed he would be ready to return to action by December, after his doctor, Jonathan Glashow, said that he could be cleared for full contact basketball in November.

People in the Miami Heat organization disputed this claim as they thought March was a more realistic target date for Oladipo’s return. However, Greg Sylvandar of Five Reasons Sports stated on September 6th, that Oladipo is ahead of schedule and could be back on the court by December.

Let’s take a look at why health is not the biggest roadblock to Victor Oladipo’s success with the Miami Heat next season.

Although Oladipo appears ahead of schedule, his injury timetable won’t be the determining factor for on-court success next season. Oladipo’s on-court success will be determined by how head coach Erik Spoelstra uses him.

Before arriving in Miami, Victor Oladipo was having a nice season with the Indiana Pacers and the Houston Rockets. He was shooting 41.1 percent from the field on 18.4 shots per game, which allowed him to average 20.8 points.

Oladipo’s success before coming to Miami was mainly due to him being a pick and roll ball handler. Oladipo was a pick and roll ball handler during 34.1 percent of his possessions as he averaged 7.5 per game.

He was able to take advantage of those possessions by shooting 37.8 percent from the field on 6.3 shots per game. He averaged 6.2 points in the pick and roll during 29 appearances. Oladipo was able to have this success in Indiana and Houston with a detached right quad.

Oladipo’s doctor told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN that Oladipo played with a detached right quad for a significant period of time. Therefore, it is unfair to blame Oladipo’s quad for his disappointing tenure in Miami.

Oladipo shot 37.2 percent in the field in four games with the Miami Heat last season on 10.8 shots. He was only able to average 12.2 points. Oladipo’s struggles are related to how Head Coach, Erik Spoelstra, chose how to use him in his short time with the team.

Head Coach, Erik Spoelstra, decided to put Oladipo off the ball as he spent 20 percent of his possessions in the spot-up shooter role, averaging 3.3 per game. Victor Oladipo’s time in this role was 3.1 percent higher than his previous stop in Houston as he was only in the role 16.9 percent of the time, averaging 4 possessions per game.

Oladipo performed worse in the role with Miami shooting 27.3 percent on 2.8 attempts per game. The Miami field goal percentage was 17.7 percent worse than in Houston as he shot 45 percent on 2.2 attempts per game.

The decision to use Victor Oladipo as a spot-up shooter cut into his pick and roll possessions as he averaged 3.8 per game. Oladipo struggled during his limited pick and roll opportunities shooting 22.2 percent on 2.3 shots per game. He only averaged 1.3 points per game in the pick and roll.

Consequently, if the Heat choose to use Victor Oladipo in a similar capacity this season when he returns to action, he will likely be disappointed. Victor Oladipo has struggled in the spot-up shooter role over multiple seasons, only making 37 percent of his attempts on 2.5 shots per game.

Erik Spoelstra would have to put Victor Oladipo back into the pick and roll ball handler role to get the most out of him, as that is where Victor Oladipo does a significant portion of his offensive damage.

Pick and rolls have been responsible for 35.5 percent of Oladipo’s possessions since 2015, averaging 7 per game. Oladipo has been inefficient in the role, only shooting 41.5 percent on 5.6 shots. Even though he has been inefficient, he has produced 5.9 points per game, almost a third of his production.

In conclusion, although Victor Oladipo being ahead of schedule is excellent, it won’t be the deciding factor in his success next season.