After a second surgery in 28 months to repair his right quadriceps tendon, Miami Heat guard Victor Oladipo could be cleared to return to full-contact basketball as soon as November, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Jonathan Glashow told ESPN.
Glashow performed the procedure on May 13, and he expressed surprise that Oladipo had even been able to play NBA basketball with the previous state of his tendon. Glashow did not perform the January 2019 procedure on Oladipo.
“I repaired the quad tendon and did it a little differently than [he had] it done before,” Glashow told ESPN. “The quad wasn’t really hooked up. It was torn, and I reattached it. I was amazed he was playing with what he had. I’m very optimistic that I could clear him in six months, by November. I think he’s going to play really well again.
“[The surgery] went extremely well, and it’s healing beautifully. I’m confident he’ll play next year.”
Oladipo, 29, will be a free agent this summer after completing the final season of a four-year, $85 million contract.
Oladipo will be rehabbing the injury in concert with the Heat doctors and Glashow. Oladipo underwent a yearlong rehab after the initial quad tendon surgery in January 2019 with the Pacers.
After arriving in Miami in a March 25 trade-deadline deal with Houston, Oladipo played four games with the Heat before re-injuring the quad against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 8. Oladipo averaged 12 points on 37% shooting in those games. Oladipo was traded to the Rockets in January as part of the four-team deal that landed James Harden in Brooklyn.
For his nine-year career, including stops with the Orlando Magic, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Pacers, he has averaged 17.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists.