NBA scores 2017: Victor Oladipo and the positive Pacers are surging

Oladipo said he’s never been in a locker room as positive as Indiana’s. They’re playing like it.

Dec 11, 2017, 12:30 PM UTC

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

After Victor Oladipo came up big yet again down the stretch in Indiana’s comeback win over Denver on Sunday, Pacers head coach Nate McMillan said it’s Oladipo’s positive attitude in the locker room that makes the difference.

“He’s just such a pleasure to work with,” McMillan said via Fox Sports Indiana after the game. “I didn’t know much about him before the trade and since coming here, the kid just brings such a positive attitude to the locker room, to the game. He’s playing with a great deal of confidence.

“People like that, good things are gonna happen for them. He’s going about this the right way. He comes in, he works on his game. He’s all about team.”

Oladipo, after scoring 32 second-half points — including eight of the Pacers’ final 10 fourth-quarter points and six in overtime — credit his teammates. He may have set a new career-high with 47 points on 15-of-28 shooting, but Indiana’s new star didn’t take too much credit.

Instead, he passed it around.

“My teammates were phenomenal today. These guys are amazing,” he said. “How much growth they’ve gotten over the week and over the year so far, and how are chemistry is. And how guys just lift each other up.

“This is the most positive locker room I’ve ever been a part of, and it’s incredible. ... We just lift each other up. These guys over here, man. It’s a special group. It’s a special team, man, and I’m just honored to be a part of it.”

The Indiana Pacers are back, and it’s not the way most expected.

Many thought it would take a few seasons to rebound from the Paul George trade. Fans looked at Oladipo’s production alongside Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City, and when his numbers didn’t match up with the four-year, $84 million contract extension he signed, they glossed over his name.

I won’t lie: I did, too.

But Oladipo has proved the doubters wrong. After setting a new career high, he’s averaging 24.5 points — the best of his career — and the Pacers are flourishing as a result. Indiana is 16-11, just behind the Bucks for a top-four seed in the East.

If that doesn’t get you excited, I’m not sure what will. As for Oladipo, well, McMillan thinks the guy’s gonna be a star.

“What you have seen this season, it’s not selfish play,” he said. “He’s playing within the framework of our team. He’s moving the ball. But he’s taking and making big shots. This is what we were hoping to develop: this type of player that in the future will be a franchise player.”