Canada’s Olynyk is looking good
Heat big man is making the most of a big chance in the NBA finals
“If you put in the work and the effort and stay true to yourself, you can pave your own path.” KELLY OLYNYK
TORONTO — Kelly Olynyk is built for the modern day National Basketball Association game.
He’s big — six-foot-11 — with three-point shooting range that makes him a threat anywhere on the court; he’s got an understated toughness that allows him to work in the post, bang on the glass and defend most big men in the game.
He’s also got a self-awareness, the basketball smarts, that lead him to understand and accept whatever role is asked of him.
It’s because the native of Kamloops, B.C., grew up learning to play the game rather than a position.
“I’m just getting out there and seizing the opportunity and knowing that I need to make plays in order for us to be successful,” the Miami Heat forward said this week. “Our teammates trust each other moving the ball, being unselfish, whether it’s Jimmy (Butler) making the right plays or our guys making extra passes.
“Whatever it is, and then just taking advantage when the opportunities come. Just kind of playing in a flow. Not pressing things too much. Just letting the game come to you. When you do that, that’s when you’ll be most successful.”
Olynyk, 29, was tremendously successful and effective as part of the fill-in group for injured Heat centre Bam Adebayo as the Heat got back into the finals despite missing two key players.
Olynyk had 17 points including three three-pointers in Miami’s Game 3 win and had 24 points in a Game 2 loss. He hit half of the 12 three-pointers he took in those two games and also grabbed 16 rebounds.
Against a Los Angeles Lakers team with a frontcourt anchored by Anthony Davis and Dwight Howard, that’s a substantial contribution.
“We’ve said it all year long that our depth is one of our best strengths,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That’s not just coachspeak. You have to have the right kind of pros that are really willing to be all about the team, and that requires sacrifice at times. So the minutes weren’t always there for them (Olynyk and Meyers Leonard of the Heat) this season, but they contributed in a big way at different points.”
Olynyk’s diverse and always-ready contribution comes as no surprise to those who know his back story, how he’s developed into the prototypical big man for the way the sport is moving these days.
The son of longtime coach Ken Olynyk — who spent one season working behind the scenes with the Toronto Raptors coaching staff — and a mom, Arlene, who was a longtime referee and the first official scorekeeper for the Raptors in the late-1990s.
His grounding in the game is in fundamentals built around complete players rather than those who are pigeonholed by their size at an early age.
He’s been a guard, a small forward, a stretch big man since he started playing the game and has carved out an NBA career that’s at seven seasons and counting.
“Obviously, with Bam out, we got a lot of big shoes to fill: offensively, defensively, scoring, on the glass — he does an immense amount of things for our team,” Olynyk said. “Obviously, it’s not just me. It’s everybody picking up his slack where he leaves off. Hopefully we can get him back and healthy but, until then, we got to pick up for our guy who’s down.”
Olynyk, fiercely proud of his Canadian roots, also benefited greatly from almost a decade with the senior men’s team. He had his national senior team debut at the 2010 world championships in Turkey as a 17year-old and has been a fixture with the program whenever possible since.
It’s given him not only a practical grounding in the evolving sport — international basketball has long been predicated on versatile big men who can shoot and pass as well as post up — but has honed his ability to deal with pressure situations.
“The national team has been huge for me in my development, just playing against pros all the time,” said Olynyk, who played for Canada through his college years at Gonzaga. “Basically, when you play with the national team, every game is a do-or-die game, a playoff game when you’re in those tournaments.
“That’s basically what you’re playing right now in the playoffs. It’s definitely been great preparation for me. Playing with the national team and having to be an option and a guy that is counted on a lot, that goes into stepping into a role right now where my team is counting on me to do some things out here and be great.”
Olynyk’s immediate future with the national team is cloudy as it is for every Canadian given the uncertainty for next season’s NBA schedule and how it factors into Olympic or Olympic qualifying timelines.
Still, he’s representing his country and his province now and that, he hopes, trickles down.
“You know, hopefully that inspired some kids back in B.C., whether it’s Kamloops or Vancouver, are watching and know this stuff is possible,” he said. “If you put in the work and the effort and stay true to yourself, you can pave your own path.”