The Miami Heat took advantage of Giannis Antetokounmpo missing Game 3 of their opening round series with a back injury on Saturday night. In the first game the two teams have played in Miami this postseason, the Heat picked up a 121-99 win over the 1-seed in the Eastern Conference to take a 2-1 series lead.
Victor Oladipo came off the bench and gave the team eight points on 4-for-6 shooting in 19 minutes of work, but unfortunately, he was unable to finish the game due to an injury. Late in the fourth quarter, Oladipo attempted to drive to the rim and had a chance at a layup, but after his left knee buckled, the veteran guard went up awkwardly, missed, and hit the deck hard. While on the ground, he held his knee and did not say anything until Cody Martin came over, which led to Oladipo appearing to say “nope.”
Victor Oladipo was helped back to the locker room after an apparent knee injury on this play in the 4th quarter of Heat-Bucks Game 3 pic.twitter.com/wHAfgW1Rt3
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) April 23, 2023
After being tended to on the ground, Oladipo eventually got some help as he made his way into the Heat locker room.
Victor Oladipo was helped off the court after he went down with an apparent knee injury in the 4th quarter. pic.twitter.com/LvVxbBd9dE
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 23, 2023
According to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, there is no diagnosis for Oladipo at this time. He was not the only Heat injury on the evening, as Jimmy Butler left the game with a glute injury. While he was available to return, Miami was able to see out a win without him.