Can someone please explain to me this fascination with Victor Oladipo? This is the same guy that was traded twice before entering his fifth season. Is he really a playoff altering type of player? Indiana gave max effort on virtually every possession, and it can be difficult to sweep those types of teams. I don’t care if Indiana had a healthy Oladipo, as I would have expected the Celtics to still have won the series in probably 5 games.
The Clippers are another max effort type of team with no star player, yet still managed to win one game against the two time defending champs. I think the Celtics should be given credit for taking care of business and not taking Indiana lightly, as it would have been very easy to do so.
He made the all star team this season and last. He made an All Defense first team and All NBA 3rd team last season. He was also the Pacers' leading scorer both seasons.
So I would say, yes.
The All Defensive team is basically a popularity award. The fact that Marcus Smart has not made one of those teams is all you need to know about the legitimacy of it.
Do you honestly think the series would have been a toss up if Oladipo was healthy, because I don't.
Fair criticism of the All Defensive teams, although I do think they've been better in recent seasons and I do think Oladipo earned his spot last year.
A toss up? No, I think the Celtics would still have been favored but with a healthy Oldapio, they probably take 2 or 3 games off Boston. All 4 games were close as it was even though they didn't have their best scorer and, most importantly to this series, their best closer.
With Oladipo last year, they took the Cavs to 7. This year, if he stays healthy, they win somewhere in the neighborhood of 55 games. He's that team's best player, hands down. It might not have made a difference in the outcome but it certainly made a difference in the series.
