Victor Oladipo could be cleared in November. Will he be back to his old form?

Bobby Marks of ESPN reported this week that Victor Oladipo could be cleared to play by November, just weeks into the 2021-22 NBA season. He quoted Jonathan Glashow, who performed the season-ending surgery on Oladipo.

Back in May, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said Oladipo could be cleared for full-contact basketball in November. The fact that he apparently remains on track to do so in August is a good sign. Prior to Wojnarowski’s report, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported that Oladipo could return later in the year — December, January or February.

Oladipo returned to the Miami Heat on a one-year, minimum deal, reflecting how two surgeries in 28 months plummeted his market value. But he remains the wild card for the Heat’s championship possibilities this season. If the two-time All-Star finds some semblance of his old form, Miami’s ceiling rises to a team that can make it to the Finals and possibly win it all.

Miami had discussions for both Lowry and Oladipo at the 2021 trade deadline just five months ago in March. Now they both are wearing Heat uniforms, and Pat Riley didn’t have to give up either Tyler Herro or Duncan Robinson. If Oladipo reaches even 75 percent of his 2018 self that made the All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams, Miami suddenly becomes stacked.