James Snook – USA Today Sports Images
At the Orlando NBA Summer League, it definitely seemed like the Boston Celtics may have gotten the steal of the 2013 NBA Draft. While they started outside of the lottery, they were able to trade with the Dallas Mavericks for the 13th overall pick. With that selection, they landed the big man out of Gonzaga, Kelly Olynyk.
Though Olynyk was fantastic in college last year, there were concerns about how he would translate to the pro game. He’s a legit seven-footer (with shoes on) and is strong, he isn’t doesn’t have wowing athleticism and has a surprisingly short wingspan. That caused worries about how effective his offensive game would be in the NBA and about how he would be able to perform defensively.
Olynyk silenced a lot of doubters at Summer League, though. In five games with Boston he averaged 18 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals in just 24.2 minutes per game and while shooting a fantastic 57.8 percent from the field. Olynyk’s offensive abilities were fully on display as he showed off his array of post-moves in addition to an impressive jumper. Moreover, he was active on the defensive end of the floor and was rather disruptive.
The Celtics received some bad news on Monday, though, when it was announced that Olynyk would not be playing for Team Canada because of the dreaded plantar fasciitis, according to Sportsnet 360’s Eric Smith. Jay King of Mass Live reported that the injury doesn’t appear to be serious and shouldn’t be an issue for Boston.
However, as Joakim Noah showed this past season, this is an injury that can crop up and sideline players or slow them down at any given moment. It’s concerning when it happens to any player, but when it happen to rookie with a long career ahead of him, there has to be a little more concern than normal. As of right now, everything with Olynyk should be alright, but this is definitely something to keep any eye on.
Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google+ and like his Facebook page.
