Kelly Olynyk seems to be in the dog house for the Miami Heat
By Duncan Smith
The Miami Heat are off to a great start through 34 games, but nearly none of that is thanks to Kelly Olynyk. It appears he may be falling out of favor.
The Miami Heat have maximized contributions on their thin and depleted roster. Players like Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson have come out of nowhere after winning their spots on the team in Summer League. Jimmy Butler has been transcendent as a play maker and defender. But nearly as conspicuously, the contributions they have not gotten stand out as well.
James Johnson and Dion Waiters have both been through injuries and suspension this season, and have contributed virtually nothing. Johnson has played in six games, averaging 11 minutes per appearance. Waiters has yet to play with three suspensions under his belt, and it’s unlikely he will contribute in any way any time soon.
Kelly Olynyk appears to be the newest addition to the Miami Heat doghouse. He has been coming off the bench behind Meyers Leonard as part of an eight-man rotation while Goran Dragic was out with injury, but his usefulness seems to be dwindling.
After averaging 23 minutes over the first 27 games of the season, he’s become a rotational afterthought. He’s played an average of 10 minutes per game over his past seven appearances, and generally his minute load has been even less than that.
He’s played eight minutes or less in five of those seven games, and he has played a total of just six minutes in the last two games against the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors.
On a thin roster that can only scrape together eight or nine healthy bodies that can expect to play minutes on any given night, it’s especially damning that Olynyk can no longer get onto the court. It’s also fascinating to note that Olynyk, Waiters and Johnson have some of the more significant overpaid contracts in the NBA, as they all languish together on the bench.
Next. Kendrick Nunn named Rookie of the Month again. dark
Head coach Erik Spoelstra has decided which players to ride with as we near the midpoint of this season, and Kelly Olynyk clearly has some work to do in order to get back into his good graces.