Even though their time together was brief, Victor Oladipo has credited his lone season with Russell Westbrook as his fork-in-the-road moment. Seeing the entire sports world marvel at his stupendous one-of-a-kind athleticism in his MVP season, he knew he had to get to peak conditioning to reach his own NBA ceiling.
Westbrook announced his NBA retirement on Aug. 12. After 18 legendary seasons, he called it a career. The future Hall-of-Famer stamped his triple-double-sized footprint on the NBA's lore. Along the way, he had a profound impact on his teammates over the years. That has led to an outpouring of support for his decision. Including from Oladipo.
"Thank you bro for all you did for me and the game of basketball," Oladipo commented on his retirement
social media post. "Most of all thank you for being an even better Brodie! Your legacy reigns forever!"
Westbrook and Oladipo spent a single season together on the Oklahoma City Thunder. Playing a supporting role in his 2016-17 MVP vengeance tour, the latter saw what it took to be an NBA franchise player. He eventually applied those lessons to his next NBA destination — as he was traded after a so-so year.
Going all in with Westbrook, the Thunder traded Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to the Indiana Pacers for Paul George. The blockbuster deal was one of the biggest moves in the 2017 NBA offseason. Eventually, it sorta worked out for both sides.
Maybe not in a direct way, per se, but how both NBA franchises flipped those assets down the road eventually led to their 2025 NBA Finals matchup. George helped the Thunder land Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams; Sabonis helped the Pacers land Tyrese Haliburton.
But let's rewind to the original two-for-one trade. The Pacers didn't need to wait long to figure out their next NBA All-Star. Oladipo seamlessly stepped into George's shoes. Slimmed down and ripped from a summer of body transformation, he enjoyed a career year. He averaged a career-best 23.1 points and led Indiana to the 2018 NBA playoffs.
Alas, that turned out to be Oladipo's peak of his NBA journey. Injuries completely derailed him of enjoying his prime. He suffered a career-altering ruptured quad tendon in Jan. 2019. He was never really the same afterward. Often injured, he only played in 102 games over four seasons. He hasn't been in the NBA since 2023 and is still hoping to make a late-stage comeback.
All that said, it's obvious Oladipo thinks highly of Westbrook. When you're teammates with an MVP winner, you get to witness basketball history and royalty firsthand. The Thunder were a pretty mediocre team and had a Round 1 exit in their sole season together, but his affinity for the 2010s NBA superstar is tangible. His Instagram comment is the latest example of that.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Victor Oladipo shows Russell Westbrook love for NBA retirement
