Opinion: These 2 Teams Should Sign This NBA All-Star This Summer
Victor Oladipo was a rising star for the Indiana Pacers several years ago (he made two trips to the All-Star Game), but he has had serious injuries over the last few years that hindered his career.
The former Indiana Hoosier is on a minimum deal with the Miami Heat right now, so he will be a free agent this summer.
Currently, the Heat are in the middle of the playoffs, and Oladipo had arguably the best game of his 2022 season in Game 5 against the Atlanta Hawks when he had 23 points on 50% shooting and helped the Heat advance to the second-round of the playoffs.
Even more impressive, he was able to carry such a big load with All-Star Kyle Lowry and Jimmy Butler both missing the game due to their own injuries.
Oladipo is still just 29-years-old, so if he can find a way to stay healthy he is still in the prime of his career.
According to Sean Deveney, of Heavy.com, one NBA General Manager thinks that Oladipo will still be having to sign a minimum deal this offseason.
Therefore, I believe that the Los Angeles Lakers or Chicago Bulls could benefit greatly from signing him.
Why the Lakers?
The Los Angeles Lakers are widely known as having not many assets, and are an aging team where the future does not look bright.
They will need to make smart trades and draft-picks and look for bargains in free agency in anyway that they can.
If Oladipo is available for the league minimum then the Lakers must sign him, because he will have the highest ceiling of any veteran player that can be scooped up for at that price that the Lakers have cap space for.
He is a two-time NBA All-Star who has experience in the playoffs, and playing with other great players.
They need shooting and play-making to take a load off LeBron James, and that is something that he can do.
In addition, if they move on from Russell Westbrook, they will need another guard.
On the contrary, if they keep Westbrook, Oladipo has played with Westbrook and they made the NBA Playoffs together in 2017 on the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Why the Bulls?
The Bulls are very deep at the guard position, but luck has not gone their way in that department.
Lonzo Ball had a season-ending injury and Alex Caruso, Zach LaVine and Coby White all missed significant time.
Therefore, they are going to need to find a way to cheaply bolster up their bench so that what happens this season does not affect them so poorly.
The biggest thing to also think about is the fact that LaVine is a free-agent, so if he leaves the Bulls they will need to find a way to fill in for his production.
Oladipo may never be the player he once was, but he will have a high ceiling that could potentially be reached.
The Bulls finished the year as the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, and they were beat by the Milwaukee Bucks in just five games in the first-round of the playoffs.
