Kelly Olynyk played this Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings his first minutes since last November 10. He then suffered a knee sprain that has kept him sidelined for more than two months.
Despite this long period of inactivity, the interior signed an outstanding performance in the victory against the Californians. In his 22 minutes on the court, he added 22 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists with a differential on the court of +27. For this reason, the coach of the Detroit Pistons, Dwane Casey, praised his pupil and highlighted everything he brings to the team.
“We need that. His experience,” said head coach in an interview for the portal Pistons.com. “Read the situations. He made a lot of plays. When they neutralized the first option, we moved on to the second option. His basketball coefficient, his offensive rebounds, he’s in the right place at the right time… All those things were great decisions on his part. To win in this league we have to have all of that.”
Every team needs experience and veteran players, especially those full of future pieces. The Pistons field the third-youngest roster in the league with an average age of 24.1 years. And in it, Olynyk, at 30 years old, shares the label of oldest player with Cory Joseph and Rodney McGruder.
(Cover photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
