Olynyk respects decision to sit out
Heat center reduced to benchwarmer against Nets
MIAMI — Among the reasons Kelly Olynyk signed with the Miami Heat in the 2017 offseason was the way coach Erik Spoelstra explained how the team was prepared to explore his unique versatility.
The latest exploration, however, caught the 3-point shooting 7-footer off guard. For the first time in his two seasons with the Heat, he was held out of the lineup due to “Coach’s Decision” in Tuesday night’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets at AmericanAirlines Arena.
“Obviously you want to play and you expect to play,” Olynyk said Wednesday, the last player to leave the practice court after taking extra shooting. “But Coach has decisions to make and that’s the decision he made. You respect it.”
With the Heat already without sidelined Goran Dragic and Tyler Johnson, players who had factored heavily into this season’s rotation, Spoelstra nonetheless opted for neophyte forwards Derrick Jones Jr. and Duncan Robinson against the Nets. It was part of a rotation remix that had Dwyane Wade back after a seven-game paternity leave and James Johnson making only his second appearance since May hernia surgery.
“With Goran out, I wanted to get Justise [Winslow] in the second lineup as a
The Heat’s Kelly Olynyk passes the ball around the Wizards’ Dwight Howard during a game at AmericanAirlines Arena. ballhandler and that had a domino effect,” Spoelstra said.
Olynyk said there was no advance warning, nor did he expect any.
“But you’re not always going to be warned what’s going to happen in life or else it wouldn’t be life,” Olynyk said.
So he made up for the lost time first with extra cardio after Tuesday’s game and then the extra court time Wednesday.
“You didn’t get to play, so you got to get your work in somewhere,” he said. “You still got to stay in shape, get a sweat, whether it’s lifting, riding the bike, conditioning, extra shots, because there’s going to be another
opportunity.
“The season is too long, so you’ve got to be ready when that time comes and when you get called upon and you’ve got to deliver.”
Guard Wayne Ellington, who found himself with his own unexpected game nights off earlier in the season, said that Olynyk handled the situation professionally, taking his best shots in practice instead of at his coach.
“You’ve just got to stay with it mentally. You’ve got to stay positive,” Ellington said. “You’ve got to cheer your teammates on and make sure you come in here and get this work.
“For me, that was the therapy, coming in here and getting this work and knowing that obviously the situation is not always about yourself. It’ll change
for you. You’ve stay with it.”
Spoelstra made clear from the outset that such a deep roster of relatively equal talents could create such moments. He said he opted for Robinson, who is on a two-way contract, over Olynyk, who is in the second year of a four-year, $50 million deal, because he viewed Robinson as “more of a perimeter player.”
Olynyk said he appreciated Spoelstra’s position.
“Top to bottom,” he said, “you can play any number of 15 to 17 guys, whatever it is. So, it’s really tough and I don’t envy Coach Spo’s position because it’s not an easy one — trying to figure out rotations and the best fit and the best combinations.”
Spoelstra just said got he to expects
Olynyk to be back in the rotation as the Heat move on, with a two-game trip against the Chicago Bulls and Toronto Raptors, starting Friday at the United Center.
“There’s only 48 minutes at every position, so it’s not easy,” Olynyk acknowledged. “There’s going to be times where guys are hurt or banged up. But if everybody is healthy, there’s going to be guys who are left out.
“But you still got to be able to contribute something to the team and help the team win in some way, whatever position you have.”