In midst of their rebuild, it appears as though the Orlando Magic found themselves a keeper in last years draft. While the draft class mostly disappointed this year, Orlandos pick, Victor Oladipo, stood out above the rest. The resilient, hard working guard proved doubters from an early age, and continues to do so early in his NBA career. There are still questions to be answered about Oladipo, as is common with almost every player in the league, but one thing is for certain: hes got himself a good foundation to get to his goal of being one of the greatest to ever play the game.
The electrifying guard was predominantly known for his defense coming out of college, and that was something he continued to showcase in his rookie season. He consistently wreaked havoc on that end, finishing the season averaging 1.6 steals per game, a defensive rating of 106 good enough for a tie for fourth on the team and the most defensive win shares on the team, finishing with 2.8.
The former Indiana Hoosier also ranks favorably on mySynergySports defensive statistics, giving up .81 points per possession, good for 61st in the league, while allowing opponents to shoot only 36.2 percent from the field. He finished 11th and 15th guarding players coming off screens and hand offs, allowing only .66 points per possession, and .67 points per possession respectively.
A big thing that allows Oladipo to be such a tenacious defender is his extremely high motor. Fellow guard and mentor to Oladipo Jameer Nelson praised the rookie for his exceptional motor, saying, He just keeps coming, keeps coming at you at both ends of the court. Hes aggressive at both ends of the court and I think thats going to separate him from a lot of guys.
