With Butler Injured, Oladipo Shines for the Miami Heat

MIAMI - After scoring only six points against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, Victor Oladipo found his rhythm Tuesday night by scoring 23 points from eight of 16 shooting from the floor, three out of six from outside the arc, and knocking down all four free throws he shot. That’s just the beginning of what Oladipo did while star forward Jimmy Butler sat the game out with a reported inflamed knee.

First off, Atlanta could not consistently stay in front of Oladipo. His ability to cut and slash into the paint caused issues for the Hawks because he’s a natural playmaker, especially after getting within 15 feet of the rim. Pass, shoot, or even just get up in the air and figure it out afterwards, Oladipo scooped to score and sent passes to open Heat shooters.

There’s also the dunk that Bam Adebayo jammed home with :59 seconds remaining to provide the Heat with their final points. Of course, Oladipo assisted on that play so Adebayo could rock the rim. That’s a game-changing moment. That’s a Heat victory as they closed out the Hawks in game five.

To think, many thought the Hawks were in a position to get back in the series with a potential road win while Butler sat on the bench in street clothes. Ah, that could not have been further from the truth. The Heat now move on to round No. 2 and Head Coach Erik Spoelstra has some interesting decisions to make.

Butler has widely been reported to be going through “soreness” but with no specific reason for the injury. He’s listed as day-to-day, and while Butler is out of the lineup perhaps the Heat can even expand their firepower. Experiment, if one will.

Oladipo is an adept ball handler. Not just gliding to the rim like a jumping gazelle through the Serengeti, but rather a player that’s happy to be a distributor and make plays. Oladipo’s ability to keep the ball moving, even if Butler stays out of the lineup, creates havoc for the opposition. Ball movement in the NBA, who’d have thought about that with so many individual creators?

The NBA is sometimes a one-on-one league. That’s not in question, but when Oladipo can help swing the basketball around it opens the chances for shooters like Tyler Herro and Max Struss to let it fly from deep. Herro is shooting 47.5% from behind the arc in the Heat’s last 10 games, while Struss is knocking down 44.8% during that same time frame. Providing even more open looks, well, that’s good news for Spoelstra and his Heat.

There’s also sharpshooter Duncan Robinson to consider. The talented wing performer is sure to get more open looks with Oladipo’s creativity. Robinson is shooting 38.8% in his last ten games from downtown. It all starts with ball movement for any of Herro, Struss and Robinson, and Oladipo is a great candidate to make that happen.

In addition to passing the basketball around, Oladipo can certainly pull up and drill it from deep as well. He’s knocking down 48.1% of his triples during that same 10-game stretch. Penetrator, distributor, and shooter, but there’s still more to Oladipo’s game.

Defense still wins NBA basketball games. Against the Hawks in game five, Oladipo’s three steals are a sign that there’s plenty of life left in his legs, as well as the same tremendously adept hand-eye coordination he’s been known for since he came into the NBA after playing at Indiana University.

The NBA is full of big-time athletes that create all the way to the rim, but even if Oladipo can pluck one, maybe two, passes off per game, that’s a chance for the Heat to come out victorious. Now there’s one interesting question about Oladipo’s emergence.

How will Spoelstra handle the minutes with Oladipo when Butler returns to the lineup? It’s a question that stems from a positive situation, but one that still needs tending to. For Spoelstra and his assistant coaching staff, finding a way to place Oladipo on the floor with Butler and have a definitive offensive rhythm is the objective. Now, how does that look during the ultra-competitive remaining series the Heat need to win to claim a NBA Championship? This is going to be fun to watch unfold.