Miami Heat's Victor Oladipo Just Enjoying The Moment

Oladipo plays a key role in the Heat eliminating the Atlanta Hawks

At this time a year ago, Miami Heat guard Victor Oladipo was worrying about if he would ever return to peak performance on the court.

On Tuesday, he proved he was back. 

Oladipo had 23 points in the Heat' 97-94 victory against the Atlanta Hawks in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round series. The Heat won the series 4-1 and will play either the Philadelphia 76ers or Toronto Raptors in the next round. 

“It’s a blessing at the end of the day to be able to play the game I love," Oladipo said. "A year ago today I was expecting and waiting for my next surgery. I was sitting in a dark room by myself and just broke down. Not because I quit, but because I was at the lowest point I could be at. Now, God has put me in this positon today. I just made the most of it. I can’t really explain why I’m going through what I went through. I can’t really explain why I’m here today, but I’m staying in the moment and making every moment mean something. Just going out there and playing hard. We had a great win. A great series. The job isn’t done yet. There is still a lot more basketball left. We just gotta keep being better. That is what I’m focused on doing. It’s getting better. It’s my ninth game. I have a lot of room to improve.”

The Heat won despite playing without starters Jimmy Butler (knee) and Kyle Lowry (hamstring). Oladipo had fallen out of the rotation but played the last two games because of the injuries. 

“I understood this process wouldn’t be easy and it hasn’t been I never shied away from work ever and I didn’t plan on doing it now," Oladipo said. "I couldn’t control the circumstance, but I could control my approach. I could control my mentality. When my number was called today and they needed me, I was able to perform at the level I performed at. I’m still improving. I haven’t played enough basketball to be super comfortable yet. I’m getting there.”

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