Former Magic No. 2 Pick Victor Oladipo Thriving With Miami Heat

The Magic took Oladipo with the No. 2 pick back in 2013.

Jeremy Brener | May 23, 2022

Former Magic No. 2 Pick Victor Oladipo Thriving With Miami Heat /

The Orlando Magic hold the No. 1 pick in this year's NBA Draft, and the organization hasn't had a pick that high since 2013, when the team drafted Indiana's Victor Oladipo with the No. 2 pick.

After a roller coaster nine-year career, Oladipo is beginning to truly prove why he was taken with the No. 2 pick in the Eastern Conference Finals with the Miami Heat.

Victor Oladipo

Markelle Fultz

Mo Bamba

The Heat head into Game 4 Monday night with the chance to take a commanding 3-1 lead and whether or not star Jimmy Butler plays as he nurses a knee injury, Oladipo will play a massive role.

Despite playing just eight regular season games (including a 40-point effort against the Magic in the regular season finale), Oladipo has played in 11 of the team's 14 playoff games so far and scored double digits in five of those games.

But even when he isn't a big contributor on offense, Oladipo's defense has willed the Heat to victory.

Without Oladipo's defensive heroics, Miami could easily be trailing in the series as opposed to leading.

It's been a long road for Oladipo to get to this point in his career. After turning 30 last week, Oladipo finally feels at home with the Heat.

He didn't fully feel that way in his stops in Orlando, Oklahoma City, Indiana and Houston, and while he projected to be a different player at different spots in his career, perhaps his role with the Heat is the one that serves him best.

Jamahl Mosley

Oladipo will likely never live up to the potential he once had as the second overall pick, but he's proving how valuable he can be in a playoff series on a winning team. And when you're winning, it doesn't matter how you got there, but rather how you can maintain a spot at the top.

Published May 23, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.