Olynyk Pre-Season Highlight Video

Likes: that 20-foot bank shot early in the video, his sense around the basket.

Dislike: his aversion to dunking the ball in seemingly obvious situations to do so. I looked him up on Draft Express, and his vertical leap numbers were surprisingly poor. Combine that with the short wingspan and you've got a below-the-rim seven-footer.

Olynyk from Draft Express:

Height with shoes: 7'0"
Wingspan: 6'9.75"
Standing reach: 9'0"
No step vertical leap: 24.5"
Max vertical leap: 29"

Compare that to Cody Zeller:

Height with shoes: 7'0"
Wingspan: 6'10.75"
Standing reach: 8'10"
No step vertical leap: 35.5"
Max vertical leap: 37.5"

Zeller is similarly wingspan-challenged, but he has much better leaping ability. I wonder if Olynyk would benefit from working on his jumping as much as strength.

Believe one other advantage, KO has a much better off hand than most 7 footers too.

beat

I didn't mean to compare Zeller and Olynyk as players, just as physically similar specimens. In particular, I wanted to point out the similarity in wingspan but the difference in leaping ability.

I watched Zeller several times last season, and I noted how soft he was around the basket, being rendered ineffective by physical play and frequently winding up on the floor. I don't think he's a particularly gifted passer, and his shooting ability outside the paint is only fair. He's athletic and can get out on the break, and if he can improve his shooting, he'll be a decent NBA player.

As you pointed out, Olynyk has several advantages over Zeller. Olynyk is a better ballhandler, passer, and outside shooter, and he's a much better finisher inside. Zeller is the better defender, but I think Olynyk can become successful defensively in Stevens' team-oriented concept.

I'll be happy with Kelly if he just bulks up more.

At this point, his athleticism is what it is, I doubt it'll get better with time. He'll just need to work around it to be successful by being a solid rebounder, defender, scorer, FT shooter, etc.



KJ

KJ,

Actually, it's just as easy, if not easier, to improve jumping ability as it is to get stronger and bulkier. When my son played volleyball, it was remarkable how quickly and dramatically his leaping improved (as well as the rest of the team) just from doing drills in practice designed specifically for that purpose.