What’s gotten into Kelly Olynyk?
COMMENTARY
Kelly Olynyk’s career was a roller coaster ride for his first two NBA seasons. While there were promising glimpses of potential within the seven-footer’s offensive game, hesitancy and inconsistency were the overriding characteristics that stood out most nights. For every 20-point outing Olynyk posted, the odds were stronger that he’d follow up that performance with a two-point no-show, instead of a repeat inspired effort.
That kind of uneven play is common for young NBA players, but Olynyk, 24, is on the older side of the spectrum for recent draftees. By the end of his second year, Olynyk wasn’t showing the growth the Boston front office had hoped to be seeing.
In response, the Celtics bulked up the frontcourt with Amir Johnson and David Lee for the 2015-16 season. The pair of big men created more competition for Olynyk and the team’s other young prospects in Jared Sullinger and Tyler Zeller.
After a slow start in his third season, Olynyk has risen to the challenge in the past two months, separating himself from the fray as one of Boston’s best and increasingly reliable frontcourt performers.
The most notable shift in Olynyk’s production has come in his 3-point shooting. After shooting a respectable 35 percent from beyond the arc in his first two seasons, Olynyk has morphed into one of the league’s best. His 44.4 percent shooting this season has placed him in the sixth overall spot in the NBA, among such names as Klay Thompson and Steph Curry.
What has caused the dramatic improvement for the Gonzaga product?
“I don’t know. They’re going in,’’ Olynyk said this week. “Confidence, definitely confidence and finding that. I was getting on a roll, putting the time in, obviously. After a couple years you know where shots are coming, where they’re not coming. You figure out what’s a good shot, what’s not, when you’re open, when you can get your shots off and keep being aggressive.’’
Brad Stevens believes Olynyk’s work ethic is paying dividends for the big man.
“He’s always been a good shooter, he’s been in a consistent good rhythm, and he works hard at it,’’ Stevens said. “He goes through stretches when he doesn’t shoot it well, but guys that work hard and put up a lot of shots tend to improve over time. Can you always shoot it at an elite level or have only good days? No. But for the most part shot-makers who put in that amount of time will make shots.’’
It hasn’t just been shooting that has been improved for the seven-footer. The big man’s defense has been one of the biggest surprises of the year. He tops the team in defensive rating (95.5) and net rating (6.2), both encouraging metrics in showing his ability to be a reliable defender for one of the league’s top units.
Olynyk has produced some of his best numbers on both ends of the floor over the past ten games, as Brad Stevens has shifted to a small-ball lineup with additional shooters and gritty perimeter defenders. Olynyk has scored in double digits in eight of those past ten games, and his effect on the team’s success on the court has been drastic when you look deeper into the numbers.
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After nearly a half season of roster shuffling by Stevens among a Celtics bench that had a logjam in its’ depth chart, the head coach’s commitment to a more settled nine-man rotation has allowed Olynyk and the rest of the bench unit to find its flow.
“I think we’re coming together well,’’ Olynyk said after Friday’s win over Magic. “This last little bit, we played pretty well together, I think. The first unit and the second unit. We’ve had that continuity and just getting used to each other and playing together and really carving out roles.’’
With the Celtics riding a season-high five-game winning streak, the team is within striking distance of the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference with its 27-21 record. While starters like Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder are getting plenty of accolades for the team’s play, the play of Olynyk and the rest of the bench unit is bringing back flashbacks to last year’s second half hot streak.
“We had a great group of guys to end last year and go on that playoff run,’’ Olynyk said. “We have pretty much the same core back and this team has been good so far. We’ve had some ups and downs but hopefully are on the upswing right now.’’
Unbelievable images from the old Boston Garden
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