Victor Oladipo named Most Improved Player
Indiana Pacers shooting guard Victor Oladipo was named Most Improved Player at the 2018 NBA Awards on Monday night.
MOST. IMPROVED. PLAYER.
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) June 26, 2018
Congrats @VicOladipo! pic.twitter.com/i3TaVqYjCz
Oladipo won the honor over Houston Rockets center Clint Capela and Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who were the other finalists.
"Shout out to the Pacers organization for believing in me," Oladipo said during his acceptance speech. "It's only the beginning for us. We're just getting started."
The 26-year-old was acquired by Indiana last summer in a blockbuster trade that sent Paul George to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In taking over from George as the franchise's star attraction, Oladipo led Indiana to 48 victories (six more than the previous season) and a playoff berth before pushing LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers to the brink of elimination in a seven-game series.
He was one of just two players in the Association to average at least 20 points (23.1) and two steals (2.4) in 2017-18. Those numbers were up from the 15.9 points and 1.2 steals that Oladipo put up for the Thunder in the previous campaign.