Victor Oladipo: “This dream…….. it’s mine, and I had it about my daughter. Actually, I have it about my daughter — pretty much every day. Her name is Naomi, but I call her Nomi. She’s four and a half. And this dream isn’t about what she’s supposed to do, or what she’s destined to accomplish. It’s about what type of person I want her to feel like she can be in this world. And when I think about the version of me that’s most going to set that example for her?? Well ... it ain’t the version that you last saw on an NBA court, at 30: a guy who was at war with his own body and mind, and struggling to understand why these bad things kept happening to him. But I’ll tell you something else……. It also ain’t the version that you saw walking to that podium, with his whole career in front of him, after shaking David Stern’s hand at 21. Or the version that you saw climbing toward the mountain top, after going toe to toe with LeBron in the playoffs at 25. Nah. It’s this version, right now, that I want Nomi to see. Me, in this moment of my life, at 34 years old. The version of her dad that got kicked all the way down the mountain, then spent years trying to climb back up, only to get kicked back down, again and again … but never once quit trying to climb. The version of her dad that, let’s be real, is probably getting counted out by a lot of people, and is probably getting laughed at by a few of them … but has managed to keep his faith, and keep his purpose. The version of her dad that’s finally found the perspective, and the humility, to write a letter like this one. To say to any GM who’s willing to listen: I believe my body is finally right. I believe I still have GREAT (and more importantly, WINNING) basketball in front of me. I believe I can be a valuable contributor to an NBA locker room. And what I’m asking for right now is an opportunity to prove it. Nomi, man…… she’s still so young. But as she grows up, and if she’s ever in a place where she wants to take lessons from my life, or bookmark pages from my story … I really just hope that this is the one she comes back to the most. I hope that this is the page she can turn to when it’s tough times. And I hope that when she does turn to it, she realizes she’s strong like her dad … but also that she’s allowed to show weakness like her dad. Because if it’s coming from a feeling that’s true, it’s all strength. And I’m already so proud of her. I hope she’s proud of me, too. So that’s where I’m at with everything. I don’t know how my journey here is going to end....... Maybe a team out there will give me a chance. Maybe no team will. That’s really up to you all. But if you’re in an NBA front office, and you took the time to read this: Thank you from the bottom of my heart. And I can promise you one thing, always, about my basketball story ... from the first page to the last. It’s a love story.” playerstribu.ne/Victor @VicOladipo | @NBA | @IndianaMBB