Indiana Pacers of America basketball star, Victor Oladipo has pointed to calm nerve and the ability to stay focused under pressure as factors behind his side’s ability to recover from tight situations in the NBA.
Oladipo stated as much after another thrilling resurgence for The Pacers against Chicago Bulls, but sports247.ng learnt that NBA watchers say his top form is the fulcrum of their explosion at key moments.
Thaddeus Young had done as much as he could in the fourth quarter for the Pacers. He had a rebound, a putback layup, a hook shot, a steal, another hook shot. He made the Bulls pay at every turn.
That wasn’t enough to get them the win in regulation, however, as the Pacers (26-12) had to venture into overtime for the 119-116 victory at United Center. They needed Oladipo, and he did not disappoint.
In the last 110 seconds with his team trailing 111-108, Oladipo drove past Lauri Markkanen for a layup, won a jump ball with Kris Dunn.
That led to Oladipo pulling up for a 3 on Markkanen to tie the score at 113, assisted on a 3 from Myles Turner and banked in the winning shot from 3 with 0.3 seconds left.
“Before overtime started I pulled him aside and said, ‘Hey, it’s time for you to take us to the Promised Land,'” Young said. “He did a really good job of executing. He made plays. He made shots.”
Oladipo finished 14-for-28 to tie his season-high with 36 points to go with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.
“You got to stay calm and make the right play. That’s what we did down the stretch,” Oladipo concluded.
