Kelly Olynyk is really developing into a solid NBA player

[demian]

I've watched a handful of Boston Celtics games this season and Kelly Olynik is really improving. He is becoming a very good role player off the bench who can score efficiently and is defending well and playing very physical. I am proud of him for finding his way in that league

[Mojo13]

I've watched a handful of Boston Celtics games this season and Kelly Olynik is really improving. He is becoming a very good role player off the bench who can score efficiently and is defending well and playing very physical. I am proud of him for finding his way in that league

I tend to agree, but ask what were you expecting? I mean he was a lottery pick chosen 13th overall so a "good role" player may even be a little below expectations.
I don't know - I was sort of expecting him to be a least a league average starter by now. He has such a unique skill set on the offensive end and such a good mind for the game. He has battled injuries it has taken him added time to adjust to the speed and athleticism of the NBA game. He has worked hard on his defense where he doesn't seem an obviously liability as he was when he entered the league. This is likely where I am most impressed as it was very possibly his fatal flaw in the NBA. This year I thought he would mesh well with Horford and take over the starting role. Granted he is on a great team, playing a meaningful role and would likely be a decent starter on many other teams (and you can say that about a number of Celtics bench players).
Consistency is the main drag on him right now. He has the tendency to go on a run of 3-4 good games and then disappear for 5-10. You are watching him on a good run. Keep in mind he wasn't extended by the Celtics this last offseason, when most rookies are. He could easily be looking for a new home this summer.

I love his game for Team Canada and in my opinion he is a Top 3 most important player for Canada in FIBA ball. Wiggins is the superior NBA player, but KO is so well suited to FIBA rules that it almost evens them out.

[demian]

I tend to agree, but ask what were you expecting? I mean he was a lottery pick chosen 13th overall so a "good role" player may even be a little below expectations.
I don't know - I was sort of expecting him to be a least a league average starter by now. He has such a unique skill set on the offensive end and such a good mind for the game. He has battled injuries it has taken him added time to adjust to the speed and athleticism of the NBA game. He has worked hard on his defense where he doesn't seem an obviously liability as he was when he entered the league. This is likely where I am most impressed as it was very possibly his fatal flaw in the NBA. This year I thought he would mesh well with Horford and take over the starting role. Granted he is on a great team, playing a meaningful role and would likely be a decent starter on many other teams (and you can say that about a number of Celtics bench players).
Consistency is the main drag on him right now. He has the tendency to go on a run of 3-4 good games and then disappear for 5-10. You are watching him on a good run. Keep in mind he wasn't extended by the Celtics this last offseason, when most rookies are. He could easily be looking for a new home this summer.

I love his game for Team Canada and in my opinion he is a Top 3 most important player for Canada in FIBA ball. Wiggins is the superior NBA player, but KO is so well suited to FIBA rules that it almost evens them out.

I don't know the facts but I am guessing over the years there are a lot of #13 picks that do absolutely nothing and by year 4 are completely out of the league. The problems and battles you listed have ended many NBA careers of lottery picks over the years. Injuries, adjustment needed for speed and athleticism of NBA game, being an obvious liability on defense etc etc. Those are things you listed and I AGREE 100% with you about those issues that a lot of guys have early in NBA career (obviously Kelly included). When you ask me what was I expecting, my answer is "I HAD NO EXPECTATIONS". The NBA draft in a lot of instances is tough to figure out who will make it and who wont, so for a #13 pick I don't know what to expect honestly. My point is I am proud of him for overcoming those setbacks and limitations that you listed and hanging in the league for awhile longer, while MANY 1st round draft picks simply cant overcome some of that stuff nor can they develop there game to survive. So good for him. Yeah maybe after this season he is not brought back to Boston but he appears to be a guy who has some value and a team will want to pick up for some front court depth and like you said maybe land on a team that isn't a NBA Finals contending team like Boston who like you said maybe he earns starters minutes. It is always good tho to see some GU guys playing meaningful minutes in BIG TIME NBA games and not only playing but producing and adding value. Nice job on your breakdown of Kellys role with Team Canada, I didn't even think about that but you are correct he is probably very good on that team.

[upan8th]

Kelly could be so much more than he's shown to date with the Celtics. Opponents don't defense him - considering him a pass first, shoot if you want to, offensive liability. This is on Kelly. He'd rather set a screen than take a shot. Watch some NBA games. Tell me you see other skilled offensive players relentlessly passing, moving and screening like Kelly does. The few games where he breaks out for 15 points, he gets most of the them from layups and dunks after faking passes to his ready to pull the trigger teammates, who, by the way, seldom return the favor with passes when he's open either on the perimeter or in the post. In his contract year, he's playing himself out of the league with his - one for all, all for one - style of play. That's college BS, Kelly, not the NBA way. To top it all, he looks unhappy. Unhappy with the bloody ongoing sumo wrestling vs opposing 7 footers in the post, unhappy with his team mates (talkin you Isaiah) taking triple-teamed contested shots rather than slide a pass to a wide open teammate. Though he's disillusioned with the league, I suppose a certain amount of dissatisfaction is tolerable for 2 mil per season in Boston. I just don't see it continuing. The best thing for him might be to play out his contract and take all those fundamentally sound game-skills to Europe where they'll be better appreciated by coaches and spectators, and take the pay cut.

[Martin Centre Mad Man]

His defense on Lebron James in Boston's recent win over Cleveland was surprisingly effective. The Celts had him guarding James one-on-one for long stretches of the game.

[Martin Centre Mad Man]

http://www.espn.com/blog/boston/celt...t-kelly-olynyk

This is a nice article. I liked the discussion of his defensive impact against the Warriors.

According to Synergy Sports tracking, Olynyk was the primary defender on eight plays. Despite being routinely switched onto Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, the Warriors' final line against Olynyk was 0-for-4 shooting with four turnovers.

[GonzagasaurusFlex]

Just turned on Celtics vs Bulls game 4. Early 2nd qtr, Olynyk just drained a 3. I don't watch much NBA and haven't seen KO in a while. He looks thick all over, as in muscle and strength. Nice to see he can still stroke it.

[Mojo13]

Just turned on Celtics vs Bulls game 4. Early 2nd qtr, Olynyk just drained a 3. I don't watch much NBA and haven't seen KO in a while. He looks thick all over, as in muscle and strength. Nice to see he can still stroke it.

Kelly has the tools to be a starter on a decent team in the NBA, but he still has major holes in his game that have not improved at the pace they have needed. I have been a little disappointed with his improvement this year as it has been somewhat muted.

KO is one of the best shooting bigmen in the NBA, that is no doubt. He also has a great dribble/drive passing game that really opens up the floor for his team mates. He has also improved meaningfully on the defensive end which has been his biggest weakness coming into the NBA. He has gone from unacceptable awful to passable / somewhat below average.

He still has major consistency problems, where you are never sure what you'll get from him on a night-in, night-out basis. In the NBA this is something that really separates good/great players from ok/below average players, as almost all NBA are good enough to have a great night from time to time.

He is still too passive on offensive, routinely passing up open shots/hesitating/pump faking. Brad Stevens and his teammates have been imploring him to be more aggressive/not hesitate for years now. He is slowly improving but it just isn't happening quick enough.

And he is just an awful rebounder - He has been getting brutalized by Robin Lopez this series (all Celtics bigs have). KO hasn't really been improving with rebounding and is such a weakness it may be the concern that prevents him from ever breaking through with the Celtics. Unless he is paired with an elite rebounder/rim protector (Horford or Amir Johnson are not), he just won't be starter quality - you just need more from that position.

It is uncertain if the Celtics try to resign him this summer. They declined his option for next year and he will be a Restricted Free Agent this summer. He may be better off heading to a team that has a stud rebounding/rim protector and desperately needs his offense. Miami with Whiteside could be a fit. Maybe Utah with Gobert (Favors doesn't fit with him)? Houston maybe. Clips? Dallas? Detroit? Seems like lots of options for him.

[GonzagasaurusFlex]

Kelly has the tools to be a starter on a decent team in the NBA, but he still has major holes in his game that have not improved at the pace they have needed. I have been a little disappointed with his improvement this year as it has been somewhat muted.

KO is one of the best shooting bigmen in the NBA, that is no doubt. He also has a great dribble/drive passing game that really opens up the floor for his team mates. He has also improved meaningfully on the defensive end which has been his biggest weakness coming into the NBA. He has gone from unacceptable awful to passable / somewhat below average.

He still has major consistency problems, where you are never sure what you'll get from him on a night-in, night-out basis. In the NBA this is something that really separates good/great players from ok/below average players, as almost all NBA are good enough to have a great night from time to time.

He is still too passive on offensive, routinely passing up open shots/hesitating/pump faking. Brad Stevens and his teammates have been imploring him to be more aggressive/not hesitate for years now. He is slowly improving but it just isn't happening quick enough.

And he is just an awful rebounder - He has been getting brutalized by Robin Lopez this series (all Celtics bigs have). KO hasn't really been improving with rebounding and is such a weakness it may be the concern that prevents him from ever breaking through with the Celtics. Unless he is paired with an elite rebounder/rim protector (Horford or Amir Johnson are not), he just won't be starter quality - you just need more from that position.

It is uncertain if the Celtics try to resign him this summer. They declined his option for next year and he will be a Restricted Free Agent this summer. He may be better off heading to a team that has a stud rebounding/rim protector and desperately needs his offense. Miami with Whiteside could be a fit. Maybe Utah with Gobert (Favors doesn't fit with him)? Houston maybe. Clips? Dallas? Detroit? Seems like lots of options for him.

Atlanta alongside Dwight Howard?

[upan8th]

Faulted Kelly in an earlier post for not playing the NBA way: mostly selfish and looking out for Number 1, but after watching the current four game set, I've changed my mind somewhat. If he wasn't constantly setting screens, hitting open teammates with effective passes and constantly moving to take his defender away from the basket, no one would. His rebounding is actually not bad considering he's usually on the perimeter, not guarding the opponent's center. When he's out of the game, the Celtics lose a valuable dimension, becoming a stand-around-and-watch-Isaiah-go-one-on-one formula for losing. If the Celtics manage to win their first two series (no chance vs Cavs in finals) & Kelly maintains his current level of play, I can easily see another team (MN, Utah, Phx?) picking up his option in the range of 30 to 35 mil for four years. The Celts are already paying Tyler Zeller 8 mil per season, for cryin' out loud. Surveys of Boston fans, however, seem most are against re-signing Kelly long term - regardless of all his solid Community work there, complaining they should have taken Antetokoumpmoko before they selected Olynyk. Trade or free A seem the most likely options for our favorite Kamlooper. He definitely won't be "playing himself out of the league" as I opined earlier.

[webspinnre]

Nice article on Kelly and the Celtics' pregame rituals:

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/1...pregame-ritual

BOSTON -- Kelly Olynyk's head was spinning.

It was early October 2013, and the Celtics were navigating the first days of training camp under newly hired head coach Brad Stevens.

Olynyk, then a 22-year-old rookie, was trying his best to simply pick up NBA terminology and make sure he was in all the right spots as the Celtics launched a new era on the campus of Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island.

[ZaGranny]

Celtics @ Wizards:

On right now.

KO nearly KO'd by KO.

Kelly Oubre took exception to Kelly Olynyk's hard foul and went after him and knocked him down

Kelly Olynyk got an offensive foul and Kelly Oubre got a flagrant 2 and wasejected.

ZaGranny

[ZagaZags]

Celtics @ Wizards:

On right now.

KO nearly KO'd by KO.

Kelly Oubre took exception to Kelly Olynyk's hard foul and went after him and knocked him down

Kelly Olynyk got an offensive foul and Kelly Oubre got a flagrant 2 and wasejected.

ZaGranny

[upan8th]

Absolutely questionable foul call on Olynyk. His feet were set, not moving, gave Oubre room to get around if he chose to (if Oubre's team mates had alerted him of the pick as they should have). A totally bogus call because of the violence of the collision. Impetus for that entirely on Oubre. Once again, Olynyk faulted for doing absolutely nothing wrong. He's the only Celtic who's been running the offense, setting the hard picks, and, as a reward, gets, as far as I can tell, no credit from the coaches, and is certainly rarely rewarded by his teammates with a pass on the roll even though he's often left unguarded. A travesty all around. Can't wait for him to land with a team that recognizes & respects all the blue collar work he does to help his team succeed.

[Martin Centre Mad Man]

http://www.espn.com/blog/boston/celt...obable-villain

Kelly continues to field chatter that he is a dirty player.

[Mojo13]

People need something to talk about. He is not a dirty player we all know that. The issue is he is relatively uncoordinated, unathletic, weaker compared to the guys he is battling with. Kelyl battles hard and it seems to me that Kelly needs tug, pull, hack, whatever needed to compete and gets caught on some badly timed maneuvers sometimes. Lots of dudes armbars guys while rebounding or undercut on box outs - Kelly just seems to hold a little too long or push a little too hard trying to compete.
There have been a few unlucky moments where he has looked bad and it has created a meme. If he didn't dislocate Love's shoulder (clearly an accident) no one would be talking about this.

It is very easy to confuse guys giving max effort mixed up in accidents with being dirty. Delly is in the same boat. Not dirty by throws himself around with reckless abandon which has lead to some "star" players getting hurt.

[Worthington]

People need something to talk about. He is not a dirty player we all know that. The issue is he is relatively uncoordinated, unathletic, weaker compared to the guys he is battling with. Kelyl battles hard and it seems to me that Kelly needs tug, pull, hack, whatever needed to compete and gets caught on some badly timed maneuvers sometimes. Lots of dudes armbars guys while rebounding or undercut on box outs - Kelly just seems to hold a little too long or push a little too hard trying to compete.
There have been a few unlucky moments where he has looked bad and it has created a meme. If he didn't dislocate Love's shoulder (clearly an accident) no one would be talking about this.

It is very easy to confuse guys giving max effort mixed up in accidents with being dirty. Delly is in the same boat. Not dirty by throws himself around with reckless abandon which has lead to some "star" players getting hurt.

Spot on.

I've seen Kelly play on multiple occasions this season and can say that he's gotten really good at figuring out the little fouls you can get away with to give yourself an advantage. The way the NBA is reffed that is a very important skill, especially when you're below average athletically like Olynyk. He could definitely be more careful at times (Kevin Love injury comes to mind), but I think we all know that Kelly isn't the kind of guy who's going out there trying to hurt people.

[CodeCobalt]

Yeah maybe after this season he is not brought back to Boston

I guess he does reach his RFA this year, but I don't think the Celtics will let him go, especially after recent events. the fans love Olynyk and he has proven quite capable. I believe him and Brad Stevens coming to the NBA from NCAA together was really beneficial. He got to spend time under Rondo. Olynyk is ahead of where I expected.

I don't know the facts but I am guessing over the years there are a lot of #13 picks that do absolutely nothing and by year 4 are completely out of the league. The problems and battles you listed have ended many NBA careers of lottery picks over the years. Injuries, adjustment needed for speed and athleticism of NBA game, being an obvious liability on defense etc

sub out 13th pick for 15th pick and you're describing Austin Daye. Couldn't cut it. Man he would have benefited even more than Olynyk if he redshirted or even stuck around more than a year. There is a difference though, I didn't expect much from Daye in the NBA, while I figured Olynyk would be a starter (which he damn near is.)

[Mojo13]

I guess he does reach his RFA this year, but I don't think the Celtics will let him go, especially after recent events. the fans love Olynyk and he has proven quite capable. I believe him and Brad Stevens coming to the NBA from NCAA together was really beneficial. He got to spend time under Rondo. Olynyk is ahead of where I expected.



sub out 13th pick for 15th pick and you're describing Austin Daye. Couldn't cut it. Man he would have benefited even more than Olynyk if he redshirted or even stuck around more than a year. There is a difference though, I didn't expect much from Daye in the NBA, while I figured Olynyk would be a starter (which he damn near is.)

Man he was great last night. What a game!

But...It is just one game. He has been ok (not great) for the rest of the series. If he could just have more consistency....

Anyways...I don't think he is resigned by the Celts, despite this 24 hour love affair. If he does this for a couple more game 7s then I'll change my mind. The Celts don't have the cap room for Kelly. There are too many other pieces they need to attend to first and will likely fish for a big FA this summer (assuming they don't win the chip). KO isn't going to sit around waiting for the Celts and plenty other teams will throw some big money at him. He is a third tier PF/C FA this summer and he can't wait around and watch all the money disappear. He will sign fairly quickly for $12-18 mil a year range. If he waits that could easily drop in half or more.


Here is Pick 10 to 21 in the 2013 Draft - I put Kelly at about average among this crop.

10 C. J. McCollum Trail Blazers
11 Michael Carter-Williams Philadelphia 76ers
12 Steven Adams Oklahoma City Thunder
13 Kelly Olynyk Dallas Mavericks
14 Shabazz Muhammad Utah Jazz
15 Giannis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks
16 Lucas Nogueira Boston Celtics
17 Dennis Schröder Atlanta Hawks
18 Shane Larkin Atlanta Hawks
19 Sergey Karasev Cleveland Cavaliers
20 Tony Snell Chicago Bulls
21 Gorgui Dieng Utah Jazz



Daye was a bust...

[CodeCobalt]

I lived in MA for 15 years and still have a lot of friends there. Kelly has had a cult like following for years and it's just been growing. then this series legitimized it. My first reaction to him being called a dirty player was "This is manufactured to increase his popularity" All series the energy has completely changed when Olynyk steps on the court.

Boston could still have the cap room but yes he's not their biggest priority. Boston in general rarely gets rid of a fan favorite.

[Alum08]

If someone had told me after Olynyk's freshman season that I would eventually watch him hold his own guarding LeBron James in the ECF, I would've assumed they were nuts.

[Mojo13]

Good read on KOs impending Free Agency this summer.

http://www.celticsblog.com/2017/6/2/...love-cavaliers

In short - not likely he will be back with the Celtics.

[ZagsGoZags]

Lots of interest in Kelly now that Celtics have released him

http://www.csnne.com/boston-celtics/...hoo&yptr=yahoo