Pacers' Victor Oladipo Still Undecided on Returning from Injury for NBA Restart

Victor Oladipo is in the NBA bubble in the Orlando, Florida, area. He's practicing with his teammates and participating in scrimmages. He's just still not sure if he'll rejoin the Indiana Pacers for the NBA restart.

The All-Star guard has been rehabbing from a quad injury and taking things slowly as he prepares to enter free agency after next season. Oladipo was noncommittal about even traveling to Orlando until recently.

He's staying mum on his plans for the rest of the year, but Thursday marked an important step in that process.

"I think today was big, just getting our conditioning up and getting a feel for the game again," Oladipo said per ESPN's Royce Young. "Obviously it's been a minute since all of us have played in a live game. It was just fun to be out there."

Young reported Pacers coach Nate McMillan isn't pressing the guard for an answer, either. Instead, the focus remained on making sure Oladipo was able to play Thursday. 

The 28-year-old took the floor for 19 minutes, scoring eight points while going 3-of-10 from the field in a 91-88 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. 

"In January and February, it was just about getting comfortable again, and I think me right now, I'm a lot more comfortable now after getting some practice in," Oladipo said. "Physically I feel better than I did back then."

He joked his teammates have been praising his work in practice because they can only compare it to how dialed back he was over the winter. 

That doesn't mean a return is imminent. Oladipo wants to continue to see how his body reacts to the increased workload, and he'll reassess his situation as the rehab work moves forward. 

"I think you've just got to know if you're OK or not, at the end of the day," Oladipo said. "This is obviously a unique situation, it's a unique injury for myself. I don't think it's me not thinking I can do it; I know my body better than anyone else. I know what I'm feeling. No one else knows what I'm feeling."