Oladipo embracing change with Heat debut Thursday

‘Hopefully, it’s for years to come,’ newcomer says of fit

This, Victor Oladipo said Thursday, is about more than the final two months of the regular season and playoffs.

It is about, he said, taking a long view with the Miami Heat.

“I think it’s going to be a great fit,” the former All-Star guard said about last week’s trade from the Houston Rockets, with his Heat debut coming in Thursday night’s game against the Golden State Warriors at American-Airlines Arena. “I truly feel like it’s going to be a great fit. Hopefully, it’s for years to come.”

An impending free agent at season’s end, Oladipo’s contribution, chemistry and comfort likely will determine if there is to be more with the Heat for the versatile 28-yearold veteran.

But, as he pointed out during his introductory video conference, it’s not as if this was a shotgun marriage, having long been linked to the Heat, dating to his time with the Indiana Pacers and his relationship with former Heat guard Dwyane Wade.

“I think my name has been linked for so many years,” he said, ultimately winding up being dealt by the Rockets for Kelly Olynyk, Avery Bradley and a first-round draft pick swap in 2022. “Obviously, I spend my offsea-

sons here, the connection with D-Wade and everything like that, I think in some people’s eyes, it would be a good fit.

“For me, personally, I thought I definitely could fit into the Heat culture and what they stood for, how they play, how they get after it and things of that nature. So when told I was being traded there, first and foremost it’s not like I’m going to a foreign land where I don’t know anybody or a foreign experience. It’s something that I’m comfortable with.”

He said he was put further at ease in his initial discussions with Heat President Pat Riley.

“My first conversation with Coach Riley was defense, defense, defense,” he said. “That was pretty much what we talked about, just coming in and defending at a high level. And it’s pretty amazing to have such a legendary leader. He wants me to come in here and he wants me to defend. That’s what I’m going to go out there and do, is help this team defensively, help this team in any way I can.”

If not for a series of injures throughout his career, Oladipo not only arguably would have been out of the Heat’s price range on the trade market, but also in the impending free-agent market. Instead, a torn quadriceps tendon in 2018-19 slowed his trajectory, with foot issues limiting him in back-to-back games during his two months this season with the Rockets.

“I don’t want to say one thing and then another thing happens,” he said, with the Heat having five remaining back-to-back sets this season. “So I’m just going to take it one day at a time and I’m just looking forward to playing with these guys. Everything that happened before, it’s in the past. I have no control over that. I just focus on here and now.”

Having arrived dealing with a head cold and then with the Heat declining to have him join them during their just-completed three-game trip, it put the debut on hold for a week.

“The best is yet to come for me,” he said. “I truly believe that my better days are ahead. I truly believe I haven’t scratched the surface of how good I can be. There’s still a lot of room for me to improve, a lot of room for me to get better.

“I have a lot to prove. I have a chip on my shoulder, obviously. They say if the road you’re on is easy then you’re on the wrong road. So everything that has happened to me has happened for a reason, and I truly believe that.”