The Utah Jazz are wasting Kelly Olynyk in a limited role and we're not entirely sure why. The multi-faceted forward/center continues to be one of the best players on the team, showing his versatility on both ends of the court. Against the Washington Wizards, he put up 19 points, four rebounds, and two assists, all while shooting 8-11 from the floor and 3-4 from three. Not only that, but he posted one of the best BPMs with +13.
He's a true game-changer on both ends of the court, and it shows itself in the advanced stats. Currently, Olynyk is second in Box Plus-Minus, behind only Lauri Markkanen. Olynyk's BPM is +2.6, and he's a plus player on both offense and defense. He's clearly a good asset for the Jazz to use in their quest to make the playoffs, yet, Keyonte George and John Collins played more minutes than him.
Collins had a good game but George went 1-6, and so we have to wonder why Olynyk and Collin Sexton, constantly take back seats to guys like George when they're struggling so much to be a positive player on the team.
Sexton is a star on the rise and Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy better realize that, but Olynyk is a bit north of 30, so everyone just assumes he's washed up and done; meaning it's time to move on from him. Yet, he's far from done, and if anything is a more complete player on both ends of the court than he's ever been before. So you'd think, with a team so desperate for good passing and strong defense, that Olynyk would be called upon more often, especially with him having such a smooth shot, but yet, here we are.
Olynyk is being wasted by a Jazz team that still doesn't know which direction they want to go in, and if they fall apart down the stretch, the refusal to play Olynyk or even a trade of him may be a major reason why.